


B is for Bourgeois

by Zizzani



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Character Development, Identity Reveal, Kinda, ON HIATUS UNTIL NOVEMBER, but like not in the way you think, redemption arc, there's gonna be a lot of ambiguity in these tags I'm not gonna lie to you
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-04-18
Updated: 2016-06-07
Packaged: 2018-06-03 02:26:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 24,234
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6592840
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zizzani/pseuds/Zizzani
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>How will Chloe discovering Ladybug's identity affect the way she views her idol? And the way she views Marinette.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Z is for Zealous

**Author's Note:**

> After months of nothing I felt the sudden urge to write again thanks to this amazing post on Tumblr http://artsyfartsyana.tumblr.com/post/142853799775/imagine-if-the-first-one-to-find-out-ladybugs
> 
> The poster graciously let me use the idea so massive thanks to her!
> 
> And yeah, I really REALLY wanted to explore Chloe's character so expect a few chapters out of this.

Chloe Bourgeois had wanted for nothing her entire life.

When she was five, she’d been sent to the most prestigious institute of learning for girls up to the age of eleven, her hair tied in pigtails with fine silk ribbons and her bright red shoes buffed until they practically glowed.

When she was 8, she’d been introduced to Adrien Agreste, son of fashion mogul, Gabriel Agreste. He’d liked her immediately, of course. They were so close; he practically worshipped her as an idol.

But now, at age 15, Chloe Bourgeois had hit a bump in her otherwise smooth path. A rather large bump, in fact. A bump so big that it graced the Parisian news once a day at the very least.

Yes, Chloe Bourgeois had hit a particularly red, particularly spotted bump in the road by the name of Ladybug. After all, it wasn’t everyday that your idol saved your life and subsequently agreed to be your friend. But the confirmation of friendship from Ladybug’s lips alone wasn’t nearly enough. Chloe needed MORE. She needed the whole of France to know of their escapades, of how they knew one another, and how Ladybug cared about her personal well-being. After all, that was all the daughter of the mayor deserved – proper recognition of her place at the side of Paris’s favourite superhero.

The bump that Chloe had hit was that her super close friend was too busy swinging around the streets of Paris saving this person and that nobody to entertain her the way a proper friend should. Honestly, the fact that Ladybug had turned up to a private interview with Alya Cesaire and yet hadn’t found the time to even have a cup of coffee was down right rude, Chloe thought angrily to herself in class.

The blonde popped her gum loudly as she inspected her nails, pouting at the barest hint of a chip in the shiny lacquer as she attempted to drown out Ms. Mendeleiv’s laughable attempt at teaching (she would have to get another manicure _immediately_ ). It was bad enough that she didn’t have Ladybug’s phone number, but the real offense was that she only ever turned up to save people when there was an akuma attack. Did she have absolutely no regard for Chloe’s feelings or what she wanted to do? Out of the corner of her eye she saw Marinette giggle at something Alya had said, and her temper flared. How dare she have fun whilst Chloe was in a bad mood! The girl clearly had no respect for the upper classes. The blonde huffed agitatedly to herself, causing the spindly teacher to turn around at the sound.

“Pardon me, Miss Bourgeouis, but am I boring you?”

 _Absolutely_ , Chloe thought, but nevertheless, she hiked the corners of her mouth up in a well-practised smile, fluttering her eyelashes at Ms. Mendeleiv.

“Oh, of course not! I was enjoying listening to you very much, but Marinette was distracting me. She’s been passing notes to Alya all afternoon,” she replied in a tone that would have been sweet were it not for the malicious edge Marinette was used to hearing in it. Her voice was cyanide seeds hidden by the sweet flesh of apple.

Marinette’s head snapped up at the sound of her name, and she shot Chloe a muted glare from across the aisle. Chloe felt a curl of satisfaction at getting a rise out of her long-standing rival, and she rested her chin in her hand, smirking in return.

“Is that true, Miss Dupain-Cheng?” Ms. Mendeleiv asked, her attention turning towards the girl.

Marinette jumped a little at the teacher’s address, her eyes blowing wide for a second.

“What? No! Chloe is lying,” she insisted, her hands flailing.

Unfortunately, the action sent a small wad of paper she’d been holding flying out from under the desk. In an instant, Chloe snatched the paper from the floor, a second before Marinette lunged for it.

“Chloe-“ the dark-haired girl began, her tone threating.

 _“Just tell him you like him, everything will work out fine, I promise!”_ Chloe recited from the note in a comically high-pitched whine. “Aw, Marinette has a crush! How pathetic.”

Chloe bit her lip to stop herself from cackling as a deep crimson shot up Marinette’s face.

“Give that _back_ ,” she hissed, attempting to grab the thin fold of paper as Chloe held it out of her reach.

A pair of fingers close around her own and Chloe whipped her head around to see Ms. Mendeleiv calmly removing the note from her hand.

“Thank you, Miss Bourgeouis, we don’t need to hear the details of the classroom’s love life. Miss Dupain-Cheng, since you seem to have forgotten that passing notes during class is prohibited, perhaps you’ll be able to refresh your memory in the Principal’s office?” She said coolly, gesturing towards the classroom door.

Marinette’s shoulders slumped in obvious defeat. Her face still traffic cone red, the girl collected her bag and left the classroom, her head bent in resignation and embarrassment. Chloe saw Alya shoot her a disgusted look, and the blonde snorted softly. Well what did she expect? Marinette clearly had no manners, so a trip to the Principal was exactly what she deserved.

“As I was saying,” Ms. Mendeleiv continued, crumpling the note in her bony fingers. “The chemical reaction that occurs during oxidisation is a-“

A huge boom erupting outside the building cut off the teacher’s next words. The sheer force of the explosion caused the ground to tremor, a few pieces of plaster and dust falling ominously from the ceiling. Half the class darted to the windows lining the room, clamouring to get a view of what was going on. Chloe didn’t, of course: Clamouring was for people who didn’t have cell phones on which they could look up the news. Idly, Chloe fished her phone out of her purse and flicked to a news feed of the incident, the image of Nadja Chamack filled the screen. Chloe recognised the school in the background of the frame, meaning that the feed was clearly live.

“Yet another super villain is attacking Paris. The akuma, calling himself The Purifier, is forcing people to scrub the streets endlessly. We have already had reports of civilians’ hands blistering from the amount of cleaning they have been forced to undertake.”

A few shots of Parisians bent double and on their knees cut into the feed, a few of them crying at the breakneck pace they were being compelled to scrub.

 _Well at least my new shoes won’t get dirty_ , Chloe thought. It was about time people did more to tidy up the streets of Paris.

“Ladybug and Chat Noir have just arrived on the scene,” Nadja announced, and Chloe attention snapped back to her phone screen.

Sure enough, the news camera followed two red and black dots as they circled the akuma, occasionally dashing forward to land a hit or a kick. She watched the battle ensue for a minute or so; her eyes trained on the red blur that periodically shot across the screen. In one corner of the frame, Chloe could make out a flannel shirt and a pair of blue jeans standing in front of the steps of the school.

_Alya._

That meant that Ladybug was outside right now! Chloe’s grip on her phone tightened so much she threatened to snap the device in half. No way was Ladybug going to dedicate another second to _Alya Cesaire_ and not to her friend. No. Chloe Bourgeois was going to hang out with Ladybug if it meant following her into battle and risking messing up her hair. Without wasting another second, Chloe stood up from her seat and marched out of the classroom. She could hear Sabrina behind her, asking where she was going and if she should go along too. Chloe ignored her, dead set on her goal. By the time she’d strode through the school and out the front doors, Ladybug was tapping her compact to release a snow white butterfly, waving genially as it flew away. As Chloe stomped down the steps, she already saw a wave of reporters surround the crime fighting duo, pressing forward like water against a dam threatening to burst, microphones brandishing wildly. Chat Noir put a hand on Ladybug’s shoulder and whispered something in her ear. She nodded in response and the black cat leapt away from the crowd, pausing on the rooftop of the school to throw the cameras a two-finger salute and a cheeky wink. Chloe, however, didn’t see any of Chat Noir’s exit. She was intently focused on Ladybug, and she strutted forward with all the force of an especially determined rhinoceros, elbowing her way through the throng of reporters, ignoring any and all complaints that were fired in her wake. As she neared the front of the crowd, she saw between the shoulders of the last few journalists as Ladybug turned to Alya.

“You there! The Ladyblog right? What’s your question?” the spotted superhero asked, her tone light and chipper, as if she hadn’t just taken down a super villain.

Oh no, thought Choe viciously. NO WAY was Alya getting another nanosecond of HER friend’s time. With a barely concealed snarl, Chloe shoved the last reporter out of the way as she cried, “Ladybug!”

Ladybug’s eyes swivelled towards her, and the girl blinked a few times in clear surprise. Chloe had barely inhaled to speak when she heard a soft beeping, watching as Ladybug’s hand flew instinctively to her earrings.

“Er, sorry everyone. Gotta go!” she announced sheepishly, taking a few baby steps back in a feeble attempt to distance herself from the small crowd. Chloe watched in utter dismay as Ladybug’s hand went to the yoyo at her hip, and she launched the wire to the top of an adjacent building, springing away into the sky. Chloe growled, actually growled, as the opportunity ripped itself away from her. She would NOT be denied this moment, she was never denied ANYTHING and that was not about to change because of some stupid secret identity or whatever.

Now no one would ever say that Chloe Bourgeois was particularly agile, or coordinated, or acrobatic, certainly not when you had two supremely enhanced heroes protecting the city. However, in order to keep her trim figure, the petite blonde clocked on average around 40 miles per week on her cross trainer, a fact that became extremely obvious as she took off at a sprint after Ladybug’s rapidly disappearing form. The truth that no one, not even Ladybug, would have suspected Chloe as the athletic type benefited the blonde greatly on this occasion, as Ladybug hadn’t moved that far from the school. Chloe swerved down a back street, desperately trying to keep up with the superhero whilst navigating her way through the (gross) alleys. When the red spotted figure disappeared from the view overhead, Chloe made an educated guess and veered sharply into a narrow passageway to her right. The mayor’s daughter could barely believe her luck when she saw her idol crouched low at the end of the alleyway, as if she had just landed from a large drop.

“Ladybug!” she cried.

The superhero whipped around, her bright blue eyes widened in horror as she took in the sight of Chloe Bourgeois blocking the alleys exit.

“I can’t believe you just took off like that, we were _supposed_ to hang out!” Chloe barked, stomping her foot so that the other girl knew just how angry she was. I mean really, was it too much to hang out with your best friend?

“Chloe!” Ladybug yelped, backing up sharply, her hand flying to the yoyo looped around her hip.

Sensing what she was about to do, Chloe sprang forward, lacing her finger around Ladybug’s wrist in a vice-like grip.

“Do NOT ignore me,” she hissed, screwing up her face in a way she knew would give her wrinkles. Ladybug was giving her WRINKLES. Seriously, what kind of friend?

“Chloe, now is NOT the time to-“ Ladybug’s desperate words were drowned out by a terrible series of warning beeps.

 _“NO!”_ she cried, her voice warped with something almost like fear as a bright flash of light beginning at her toes wiped over her form.

Chloe blinked in the blinding flash, the colourful dots taking a few seconds to fade from her vision. When she could finally see a moment later, her mouth dropped open in complete an utter disbelief.

Because in the exact spot where Ladybug had just been, squirming uncomfortably in her tight grasp, was none other than Marinette Dupain-Cheng.


	2. V is for Volition

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chloe's manipulative instincts get the better of her and Marinette deals with the fallout of her identity being revealed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Massive thank you to http://www.pozolegirl.tumblr.com/ for being my beta!
> 
> She mentioned this chapter made her anxious, so for those of you who may experience anxiety I'd like to reassure you that things WILL be resolved as the story progresses, but I can't tell you much more than that without giving away the details.
> 
> I'm trying to hint at how Chloe's upbringing has affected her judgement, but we'll touch on that in later chapters as well. For now, I hope you enjoy the chapter :)

Marinette’s eyes were so wide that Chloe might as well have been staring into two perfectly round crystal balls. The pure horror in her expression at the loss of her transformation froze the dark haired girl to the spot. Chloe wasn’t exactly doing much better: She gaped at Marinette in wordless disbelief, feeling as if the insides of her skull were melting with complete failure to process the revelation.

 

Marinette managed to compose herself first. Closing her jaw with a snap, she twisted her arm free of Chloe’s grip, recoiling as far as she could into the alleyway, as if distancing herself would somehow put that band-aid back on. Chloe took a second longer, finally snatching her hand back as if she’d been scorched, her features twisting into a look of revulsion.

 

“Marinette??” she managed to choke out.

 

No, this was all wrong. Marinette couldn’t be Ladybug. She COULDN’T. Ladybug was incredible; she soared above the lower class. Marinette was… Well, she was a baker’s daughter. Chloe doubted her family even had enough money to pay for her wardrobe, judging by the worn out shoes she traipsed around in. There wasn’t even the slightest possible chance that Chloe’s idol could turn out to be someone so completely… LOWER than her. Chloe would have vehemently argued her case until the end of time, had it not been for the fact that she’d seen it with her own two eyes. She barely even registered Marinette tucking a small red blob into her purse.

 

“ _You’re_ Ladybug?” Chloe asked, her voice coming out in an extremely unattractive warble.

 

“Chloe, listen-“ Marinette began, her hands outstretched in front of her in a universal display of non-violence.

 

“ _Impossible!_ This is ridiculous! Utterly ridiculous!” Chloe spat at her, punctuating every adjective with a jab of her finger towards Marinette’s face. “You? Ladybug? Ha! Don’t make me laugh,” she continued, though Chloe herself could hear the conviction of her tone wavering.

 

“I can’t believe I’m asking this,” Marinette muttered, more to herself it seemed than anyone. “But Chloe, you really can’t tell anyone, okay? This HAS to be kept secret, for your own safety as much as mine. Promise me you won’t tell anybody about this?”

 

Chloe watched as her rival’s eyes met hers imploringly. Marinette clenched her hands to her chest, almost as if she were begging. She looked so utterly desperate honestly it was… pitiful. Chloe suddenly realised what a tremendous advantage she had over Marinette, and she couldn’t help a wicked smirk from creeping up her face. Here was an opportunity to get what she wanted, what she’d been wanting since Ladybug had saved her from becoming a pretty blonde asphalt pancake in front of the Eiffel Tower. Cocking a hip, she let her eyes sweep down Marinette’s form, pausing to take in her scuffed pink pumps, before letting her gaze roam back up to the other girl’s eyes.

 

“Oh, don’t worry, Marinette. I won’t tell anyone,” she cooed, turning her head to brush a stray blonde hair behind her ear.

 

Marinette looked hesitant, clearly not convinced. Chloe fixed her with a look, clicking her tongue as she chose her next words.

 

“As long as you do whatever I say.”

 

Marinette actually had the audacity to bark out a short laugh. Anger flared within Chloe, and her smirk dropped instantly as she ground her teeth. How DARE Marinette not take her seriously?

 

“I don’t have time for this,” Marinette replied dismissively, side stepping Chloe as she made her way out of the alley. “I’ve gotta get back to school.”

 

Normally Chloe would have settled for a snide remark about her appearance, or her family’s status, something to put her disrespectful classmate back in her place. But as it was, now all the chips were on the table, and Chloe could practically take her pick of the winnings.

 

“I’d think twice about rejecting my kind offer,” Chloe called after her, her tone alarmingly patient.

 

Pulling out her phone, she swiped across the screen, navigating through her social media apps and rapidly typing something out.

 

“One push of my finger and the entire of Paris knows that Ladybug is just plain old Marinette Dupain-Cheng.”

 

Chloe’s pulse spiked as she uttered Ladybug’s name, the image of her hero, a figure she practically worshipped, standing before her as none other than a classmate she had despised for years momentarily halting her instinct to manipulate. It was gone in a second, the mental picture of Marinette yielding to her every command quashing the novelty of knowing a superhero.

 

Marinette stopped abruptly in her tracks at the threat, as if her feet had cemented themselves to the pavement beneath. She turned to face the blonde, a look of mild bemusement on her face as she calculated her next words.

 

“As if anyone would believe you with out proof.”

 

CLICK

 

Marinette lifted her eyes to shield them from the sudden bright flash of light from Chloe’s phone camera. Chloe’s smile only grew.

 

“Once I post this picture of you next to one of Ladybug, who’s to say someone won’t do the math? Or better yet – Photoshop the pictures to look for similarities,” Chloe said, her tone bordering on blasé.

 

Normal people were so predictable – Withhold something they wanted and they’d just about bend over backwards to get it. Chloe had seen her father do it time and time again to climb the ranks in business and secure his place as mayor. It was a remarkably efficient tactic, and one that Chloe had used effectively to secure her rank at the top of the classroom hierarchy.

 

A flash of genuine fear shone in Marinette’s eyes, her mouth opening and closing wordlessly as she processed the threat. Chloe could practically see the gears of her mind kicking into overdrive as she went through her options. A futile effort, really, since Chloe knew she was going to agree. 3… 2… 1…

 

“Fine,” Marinette snapped with a resolute huff.

 

 _Typical_ , Chloe thought. She’d known Marinette would agree, all the Bourgeois were smart.

 

Spinning on her heel, Marinette launched herself into a jog, expertly winding through the system of back alleys in the direction of the school.

 

 _“HEY!”_ Chloe shouted after her, setting off at a run to match the other girl’s speed.

 

If Marinette was surprised the other girl could keep up, she didn’t say anything. Instead, she silently ran back to the school, her eyebrows pulled together in annoyance. By the time they reached class, Ms. Mendeleiev was waving a chalkboard duster in irritation as she tried to settle the class. As the girls passed the front desk, Chloe caught a snippet of conversation.

 

“-you go, dude? You just disappeared?” Nino asked in a hushed tone.

 

Chloe sniffed shortly. She couldn’t abide Nino’s common language.

 

“Er, I just had to go to the bathroom,” Adrien, her good friend replied, habitually scratching the back of his head in a way Chloe would have found constantly annoying were it not for the fact that it showed off his arm muscles.

 

“In the middle of an akuma attack?!”

 

“I had to go REAL bad.”

 

Chloe paused in the aisle next to her desk, turning her eyes to survey Adrien. He really was gorgeous. She wouldn’t go far enough to say she was lucky to have him, because of course it was Adrien who was lucky to have _her_ , but she was glad he loved her. No one less would do, not for her expensive tastes, and the Agreste family was loaded. Chloe turned her head to look as Marinette plopped herself wearily down in her seat: A seat that _should_ have been Chloe’s.

 

“Er, Marinette?” She began, raising her voice so the entire class would hear.

 

Marinette raised her head from where it had been lying on her folded arms, regarding Chloe with a mixture of annoyance and trepidation. Chloe smiled sweetly at her, making sure to shoot Adrien a wink. He blinked at her, probably star struck at her beauty.

 

“I feel like trading seats,” Chloe said in a light tone, crossing her arms expectantly.

 

Marinette frowned.

 

“This has always been my seat,” came her deadpan reply.

 

Chloe had to stop herself from rolling her eyes. Clearly Marinette did not understand the situation.

 

“Yes, but now _I_ feel like sitting there,” Chloe continued, twirling her phone in her expensively manicured hand. “And I want Sabrina to sit with me so you can take Alya with you as well.”

 

Marinette’s eyes flew to the movement, her pupils following the rotation of the screen like a cat watching a mouse. Her face sank into a scowl as she realised the implication behind the action.

 

“Yeah, like we’re gonna move seats just because you told us to,” Alya laughed, nudging Marinette in the arm.

 

A wash of pure venom shot through Chloe veins at the incredulous look Alya gave her, but she controlled herself. Who did the girl think she was, talking to her that way? Chloe raised her thumb menacingly over the home button of her phone, watching with great satisfaction as Marinette bit her lip, looking for the world like she was stopping an army of comebacks from marching out of her mouth. After a second, she let out a quiet sigh and slipped her books into her bag, standing up and stepping into the aisle.

 

“C’mon, Alya,” she mumbled keeping her eyes cast down as she stepped past Chloe and slid into the seat at the front of the class. Alya’s mouth dropped open. A heavy silence had filled the room, the entire class watching in absolute shock as Marinette limply complied. Even Adrien looked surprised. He was probably just impressed at how effortlessly Chloe had handled the situation though.

 

Chloe tossed her hair, picking up her designer handbag and settling into the seat behind the model, delicately crossing her legs. She turned to glare at Alya, who hadn’t budged an inch, still staring at Marinette. After a tense moment, the reported scrambled to put her books in her woefully tacky bag and moved round the front desk to join her friend. Chloe watched in her periphery as Alya leaned in sharply to whisper something to Marinette, her expression quizzical. Marinette simply leaned on the desktop, burying her face into her arms.

 

“Adrien, this is so great!” Chloe crooned, leaning her face into her hands to better frame her cheekbones. “We’ll get to do more projects together now!”

 

Adrien’s head whipped round at the sound of his name, and a flicker of odd emotion swept across his face before settling into a shy smile.

 

“Er yeah, I guess,” he offered meekly.

 

Of course he was nervous around her, she was stunning after all, but it was just a burden she had learnt to carry. Nino stared at Adrien, his eyes finally moving up to Chloe. The DJ looked like he was about to be sick. Wow, she was good, getting people so nervous at her radiance that they couldn’t control their own stomachs.

 

“Chloe that was amazing! Marinette just did exactly would you said, you really are wonderful,” Sabrina’s tinkling voice said as she sat down next to the blonde.

 

“I know, right? Of course, it’s just as it should be. I _am_ the Mayor’s daughter, after all,” Chloe explained.

 

Sabrina was sweet and quiet and submissive, all the things Chloe liked, but sometimes she seemed to forget Chloe’s status, not that she had a problem reminding the other girl. Chloe’s icy blue gaze drifted to Marinette’s hunched figure across the aisle.

 

“It’s important that people know their place.”

 

__

 

Marinette collapsed face first onto her bed, her loud groan muffled by a pillow. Of all the people in Paris, of all the people in the WHOLE WORLD to find out her identity, it just had to be Chloe Bourgeois. As if her life wasn’t hard enough!

 

“Marinette, it’s not as bad as you think,” Tikki comforted, swooping down by the teenager’ ear since her eyes were obscured.

 

“Not as bad?” Marinette cried, sitting up sharply on the mattress. “Tikki, this is the absolute WROST thing that could have happened! How could this possibly be not that bad?”

 

Tikki clasped her tiny hands together, smiling gently.

 

“Maybe Chloe won’t be so bad now that she knows who you are? She loves Ladybug, remember?” the kwami suggested.

 

Marinette groaned and flung herself backwards onto the bed, staring blankly at the ceiling.

 

“Yeah right. You saw what happened today in class. She’s gonna make my life miserable.”

 

Tikki perched herself on Marinette’s forehead, leaning forwards to stare into the girl’s eyes.

 

“Chloe will come around, just give her some time. She’ll see how important saving the city is.”

 

“Oh please, the only thing Chloe thinks is important is shopping,” Marinette sighed, letting her eyelids wearily slide closed.

 

She slept with difficulty that night. Marinette dreamt that the city was being destroyed, civilians running and screaming for their lives. To her right was Chat Noir, his jaw set and his eyes determined.

 

“Let’s go, Ladybug!” He yelled, leaping from the rooftop into the fray.

 

Ladybug moved to leap after him, but as her feet left the roof tiles she was cruelly pulled back. Her body hit a chimney, crumbling the stone with the force. When she had composed herself, Ladybug saw thick ropes tied around her wrists and ankles, yanking her to and fro like a rag doll. Towering above her she saw Chloe, holding a cross handle to which the ropes were attached.

 

“Marionette, Marionette, Marionette,” she chanted in an eerie sing song voice, her icy blue eyes glows brightly in contrast with the red tinted clouds.

 

Ladybug twisted against the push and pull action, trying to see Chat Noir. She caught sight of him, his blonde hair forming a halo atop his leather-clad form. Ladybug called out to him desperately, clawing against the tiles to try and gain some purchase, just as she heard a thunderous boom. A blinding orange light flared from the Eiffel Tower, radiating outwards, destroying everything in its path. Ladybug watched in utter helplessness as fire engulfed the city. Chat Noir turned at the sound of his name, a look of pure terror in his eyes as the flames surrounded him.

 

And then he was gone.

 

Marinette woke with a start, cold sweat plastering her pyjamas to her body. Tikki looked up groggily from her place on the pillow, her eyelids only half open. Hands shaking, Marinette grabbed her phone to check the time. 4:40am. School tomorrow was not going to be fun.

 

__

 

Chloe Bourgeois couldn’t be happier. She’s spent all evening planning a schedule with Ladybug: How they’d go shopping, how they’d get coffee, and take lots of photos together for Facebook, that was the most important thing. France was going to ADORE the sweetheart of Paris being best friends with Ladybug.

 

When she’d arrived at school, she was happy to see Marinette had stayed in her place at the front of the class. Alya entered the class room a few minutes later, taking in Chloe and Sabrina sat in her former seat with an angry huff before marching over to the desk where Marinette slumped, throwing herself down next to her friend. Any conversation she tried to engage Marinette in over the top of their new arrangement was met with a weary wave of the other girl’s hand and a soft grunt. The fact that Alya didn’t know she was sitting next to Ladybug when she obsessively ran that blog of hers struck Chloe like a chord. The blonde suddenly burst out laughing, her fingers fluttering over her open mouth in a way that was only ladylike. Alya turned to glare at her, as the rest of the class’s heads turned to take in Chloe Bourgeois practically bent double with laughter.

 

“What’s so funny, Chlo?” Adrien enquired as he slid into his seat in front of her.

 

“Oh, Adrien!” Chloe managed to say between giggles, daintily dabbing at her eyes with a tissue Sabrina had handed her. She didn’t want to smudge her make up after all. “I was just laughing at Alya. I mean, sometimes it really just strikes me how stupid she is.”

 

Chloe actually _heard_ Alya snarl. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Marinette put a hand imploringly on her friend’s arm, probably to consoler her, but most likely to hold her back. That was all that was appropriate for such a beast of a girl. Adrien frowned at the comment.

 

“Chloe, that’s not nice.”  


“No, it isn’t, is it? And yet, I graciously put up with it,” Chloe replied, scrunching the tissue in her fingers and flicking it in Sabrina’s general direction.

 

Her friend scrambled to catch the dirty tissue, letting it drop into her lap when her clumsy fingers couldn’t quite grasp it. Adrien looked like he wanted to say more, but at that moment, Ms. Bustier entered the classroom and he turned round to settle in his seat.

 

The day passed slower than Chloe would have liked, but then again, school was so boring. She flicked through webpages on her phone, adding clothes she liked to her online basket. Whenever she was asked a question, Sabrina would slide her a note to tell her the answer or she would just deflect it onto another student. It wasn’t like she had to do her homework anyway; Sabrina would just do it for her. When the bell finally rang, the blonde sighed heavily and picked up her bag, gliding down the steps to the front of the class. As she passed Marinette’s desk, she caught Alya complaining about her friend’s change in attitude.

 

“-happened that I don’t know about? You’re acting really weird.”  


“I’m fine, Alya. I just really didn’t feel like tackling Chloe yesterday,” Marinette replied, her tone making it clear she didn’t want to discuss.

 

“And what about today? You kept the seat she TOLD you to! That’s NOT the Marinette I know.”

 

Chloe ground her teeth. Alya was seriously getting on her nerves, and she was not about to have that. It was bad for her skin. Chloe waited in the hall for the two girls to emerge, Sabrina hovering skittishly as her side. She grabbed Marinette roughly by the arm as she walked by. The force of her tug nearly pulled Marinette over, and the girl keeled sharply backwards, catching and righting herself at the last second. Again, Chloe was suddenly smacked with the mental image of Ladybug, toppling over in the hallway a la Marinette. The two pictures just didn’t seem to align, the comparison jarring Chloe back to the present.

 

“Excuse me, Alya, but I need to speak with Marinette for a moment,” she said loudly, making it obvious that it was not a negotiation.

 

Marinette’s eyes had flown wide at almost face-planting the ground, but her expression settled into one of extreme trepidation at Chloe’s words and the grip on her arm that was tight enough to bruise. Alya’s eyebrows sank down, her eyes narrowing enough that is almost looked like she was squinting.

 

“Leave her alone, Chloe,” the reported ordered, her tone even.

 

Her? Ordering Chloe around? The audacity!

 

“You’re getting rather annoying with that attitude of yours, Alya,” Chloe told her, letting her eyelids slide down slightly in what was clearly a judgemental expression. “I think you’re done being Marinette’s friend, wouldn’t you say, Marinette?”

 

Chloe shook the other girl in her grip, giving her a meaningful stare.

 

“What?!” Alya sputtered. “You can’t just tell us that we can’t be friends! Who do you think you are?”

 

“She’s right!” Marientte piped up, wrenching her arm out of Chloe grip and rubbing where the blondes manicured nails had dug into the soft flesh. “You don’t decide who I’m friends with.”

 

Chloe quirked an eyebrow at her. Calmly (and with compete poise), she slipped her phone out of her bag and began tapping the keys on the screen.

 

“Oh that’s funny,” she mused, revelling in the sight of all the colour draining from Marinette’s face. “I haven’t seen any updates on the Ladyblog since yesterday’s attack.”

 

Alya scowled at the mention of her blog. She curled her fingers gently around Marinette’s opposite arm.

 

“C’mon, let’s go,” she muttered, giving the dark haired girl a soft tug.

 

But Marinette was frozen to the spot. When she didn’t move, Alya turned to stare at her, concern filling her eyes.

 

“I… I just need to talk to Chloe for a sec,” Marinette mumbled, not meeting her best friend’s gaze.

 

Alya stared at Marinette for a second. She opened her mouth to say something, before seeming to think better and closing it again.

 

“Whatever, I’ll talk to you later,” Alya grumbled, turning her back on the situation and stalking down the staircase to the ground gates.

 

“You can go, Sabrina,” Chloe said to her friend, dismissing her with a wave of her fingers.

 

“Okay Chloe, I’ll have your homework done tonight!” Sabrina said brightly, skipping down the stairs after Alya.

 

Marinette’s eyebrows pulled together unhappily at the redhead’s departing statement.

 

“What do you want, Chloe?” Marinette asked, her tone hard.

 

“We’re going shopping!” Chloe announced, folding her arms across her chest.

 

Marinette blinked at her, completely non-plussed.

 

“Errr, thanks, but I have homework,” she responded after a second.

 

“Not with _you_ ,” Chloe spat. “ _I_ want to go shopping with _Ladybug_.”

 

Marinette blinked again, the words grinding through her mental gears.

 

“Well maybe _Ladybug_ has better things to do?” she fired back.

 

“Oh, Marinette,” Chloe sighed, as if she were talking to a particularly slow child. “I’d love it if Ladybug could make time in her busy schedule for me,” she said coolly, scrolling calmly through the images on her phone screen. When she found the right one, she held it out for Marinette to see. “Since we are BFFs.”

 

Marinette gasped at the image she was being shown. The screen had been divided into three columns lining up next to each other. In the first was a picture of her from their school photo, her smile wide. The second was a picture of Ladybug that had been captured by the press at an event, the superhero’s pigtails shining in the sunlight as she smiled for the cameras. The third image was of Ladybug.

 

With her mask Photoshopped off.

 

Chloe wasn’t surprised no one had worked it out yet. After all, Marinette Dupain-Cheng was a Nobody with a capital ‘N’. She was clumsy and uncoordinated, and basically the antithesis of Ladybug. No wonder no one had managed to figure out Ladybug’s identity. She was masquerading as a complete peasant!

 

Marinette’s lips pressed together with malcontent.

 

“Fine,” she hissed. “When do you want to go?”

 

“Now,” Chloe answered. She would be damned if she wasn’t going to hang out with Ladybug right away.

 

“I’ll meet you outside the front steps,” Marinette told the blonde, before spinning on her heel and taking off down the corridor before Chloe could utter another word.

 

They were going to have to work on her manners.

  


	3. U is for Undesireable

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When the safety of the public is threatened, Marinette has to choose if she will risk angering Chloe to help.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a bit short, but what's happening next is too long to fit in this chapter so I decided to cut it here for now. I have so many thoughts on Chloe's attitude and exactly why she acts the way she does

Marinette’s afternoon felt like the longest of her life, and this was coming from a girl who battled supervillains on a weekly basis.

 

After she had met Chloe outside the school, the blonde had dragged her around shop after shop, snapping pictures of the two of them together almost twice a minute. Ladybug could do little more than offer the shop assistants a sheepish wave and a vague explanation about helping out a friend when she was greeted with their quizzical looks. Chloe prattled on and on about shoes and makeup and how her daddy, The Mayor of Paris, had given her her own credit card. She even had Ladybug carry some of her shopping bags, though Marinette made a point of holding them away from her body to illustrate her lack of participation in the activity.

 

A few times, fans approached Ladybug, each wanting a picture or an autograph, some merely wanting the opportunity to talk to part of the superhero duo that protected their city. Each time, Chloe made a boorish point of draping herself across Ladybug’s shoulders whilst telling onlookers about how great of friends they were. Sometimes she shooed them, announcing that Ladybug was hanging out with HER, and a few times she flat out dismissed them, rudely waving her fingers or making a vicious remark about their appearance. Those were the ones that bothered Marinette the most: She was supposed to offer people comfort and inspiration, and yet here she was taking orders from a spoilt brat and allowing Chloe to stomp all over people. The best she could afford was a parting apology and a reassuring smile as she submissively followed Chloe’s entitled strutting.

 

“How much longer are we going to do this?” Marinette groaned as Chloe yanked her into the frame of yet another selfie.

 

“Until I’m finished,” Chloe answered offhandedly, scrolling through her camera feed in search of blemishes. Her eyes suddenly lit up at a photo she seemed to like. “I can’t believe I’m shopping with Ladybug! Don’t we just look perfect together?”

 

She held the phone up to show the spotted superhero a photograph of them outside a designer boutique, Chloe looking smug and Ladybug looking… Just about ready to give up on life, actually.

 

Marinette was about ready to dump the bags she was carrying on the pavement and stalk back home, identity reveal or not, when a petrified shriek cut through the city’s ambience. All at once, civilians came running down the street towards the girls, fleeing something they couldn’t yet see. Marinette got the chance to fulfil her fantasy, dropping the designer branded bags by her feet and adopting a fighting stance, ready to take on whatever had caused the unrest.

 

“Excuse you!” Chloe’s grating voice cut through her focus. “Those clothes are _Chanel!_ ”

 

But Marinette wasn’t listening, instead her eyes darting left and right, trying to suss out an immediate threat. The sound of shattering brick from a nearby rooftop caught her attention, and her eyes shot up to see an entire chimney topple over the edge of the building it was on, hurtling towards a young girl stood on the pavement below, oblivious to her impending doom. Ladybug hurled her yoyo, attaching it to a drainpipe and launching herself towards the child. She managed to scoop the girl up in her arms a split second before the chimney hit where she’d been standing idly, the impact cracking the pavement. She heard a horrified gasp and turned to see a woman pushing a buggy, her hands over her mouth, presumably the girl’s mother. Ladybug landed softly, walking over to the woman and passing the child into her outstretched arms.

 

“Mummy!”

 

“Oh Ladybug, thank you,” the woman whispered tearfully, clutching the young girl to her chest as she stroked her hair consolingly.

 

Ladybug smiled at her, watching her scuttle down the street before turning with her yoyo in hand, ready to leap.

 

“HEY!”

 

Marinette bristled at Chloe’s indignant yell. She watched as the girl stomped over to her, arms holding the dropped bags along with her other numerous purchases, making the action somewhat cumbersome and a little comical to see.

 

“We’re not done shopping!” Chloe pouted, a few strands of hair falling into her face as she came to a stop level with Ladybug.

 

“Shopping? I didn’t realise My Lady had such expensive taste.”

 

Marinette’s shoulders hiked up towards her ears at the familiar voice. Chat Noir dropped down from the lamppost on which he’d been perched; walking to her side and taking in the shopping bags Chloe was holding with a quirk of his smile.

 

“You got here quickly,” Marinette remarked, electing to ignore his comment in the hope that he’d drop the subject.

 

“I was in the area,” he replied vaguely. “Do you think it’s an akuma?”

 

“I don’t know, but we’d better find out.”

 

Chat Noir nodded, taking his staff out and vaulting onto the nearby rooftop. Marinette drew back her arm, ready to launch her yoyo in pursuit when she heard a thud behind her. Whipping around at the noise, she saw Chloe had dumped her many shopping bags on the ground and was haughtily twirling her phone in her fingers. Ice shot through Marinette’s veins at the unspoken threat, and she curled her fingers into fists with anger.

 

“Oh, are you off to save Paris?” Chloe asked, her tone awed in spite of her actions. “That’s too bad, I really wanted to do some more shopping, since Ladybug and me are best friends after all.”

 

Marinette felt fury swirl within her.

 

“Best friends don’t blackmail each other, Chloe,” she informed bitterly, her tone coming out more exasperated than anything else.

 

“I’m not _blackmailing_ you!” Chloe sound offended at the accusation. “I’m giving you an option!”

 

She lowered her thumb perilously close to the screen just as another loud scream came from the neighbouring street. Marinette span around at the sound, her instincts urging her forward whilst her mind strained to hold her body back. She felt like an exposed wire, electricity flowing through her muscles with no conductor to complete the circuit. She ground her teeth in frustration, turning her head to look at Chloe standing with one arm crossed over her body, the other holding the phone. An infuriatingly smug smile curled at the corner of Chloe’s mouth, and that was what did it for Marinette. The complete sense of entitlement that rolled off the blonde in waves was like jamming a fork into a live plug, sparking Marinette’s reaction. In an instant she’d come to her decision.

 

“Fine,” she spat out, her tone surprisingly venomous. “Go ahead and post that photo and watch as you no longer have Ladybug to hang out with exclusively. I’ll be too busy being hounded by reporters in my own home.”

 

Chloe blinked stupidly at the aggression in her voice, Marinette’s words sinking in slowly like a stone into wet sand.

 

“I don’t care what happens to me,” Marinette continued, protective nature ringing through her speech. “I will _not_ endanger the lives of innocent people because you don’t think you’ve bought enough shoes.”

 

With that, she whirled around, lobbing the yoyo up to the nearest balcony and zipping away. As she flew through the air, she hoped for the first time in her life that Chloe was just as selfish as she thought, and that she would decide to keep Ladybug all to herself.

 

__

 

 

Chloe stared after Ladybug in the wake of her outburst; her jaw practically swinging it had dropped so fast. Reflexively, her petulance flared under her skin, and she tapped the share button on her phone screen. Tapping out a quick message to Le Journal du Paris, Chloe’s thumb hovered over the send button, ready to expose Ladybug’s secret.

 

_Go ahead and post that photo and watch as you no longer have Ladybug to hang out with exclusively._

Chloe stopped, the words spinning lazily through her cranium. The superhero was right: As soon as people found out, everyone would want a piece of Ladybug. Chloe would have to share her with _commoners._ The blonde shuddered; she was not about to have people get their grubby peasant hands anywhere near her designer outfit.

 

_I will not endanger the lives of innocent people because you don’t think you’ve bought enough shoes._

Ladybug was so wrong: You could _never_ have to many shoes. But… Chloe’s mind flashed back to when Stoneheart had launched her off the Eiffel Tower. She’d truly thought that that was it for her. She’d have been stylishly dressed road kill had it not been for Ladybug. Chloe owed the superhero her life. She owed _Marinette_ her life. The thought of owing such a lowly girl anything made Chloe’s blood sizzle in her veins, but only for a moment before she cast her eyes back down to her phone screen, her thoughts swirling together in a murky confused conflict of awe and hatred.

 

Marinette had saved her life.

 

Chloe took one last look at the message she’d typed, her finger still poised to hit _envoyer_ and change Paris’ history forever. 10 seconds passed… 20 seconds… Then, with a short contemptuous exhale, she moved her thumb to the opposite side of the screen and deleted the text. When she was done, Chloe hit the speed dial for her chauffeur (as if she was going to carry her own shopping bags home), deciding that the action made them even. Marinette had saved her life, and in return she wouldn’t ruin hers. This time.

 

__

 

Chloe lay on her waterbed in the grande suite of L'hôtel du Bourgeois, passively scrolling through the Ladyblog. Of course Alya had posted the lasted update: The attack earlier that day had not been an akuma, but an escaped animal from the zoo. The blog post was complete with a few photos of Ladybug and Chat Noir managing to trap the creature until animal control turned up. There was a follow up photo of the duo waving at their fans. A soft tap at her window caused her to look up from the bright screen to see Ladybug standing on her balcony wringing her hands in mild agitation. Chloe slipped off the silk sheets, padding softly over to the balcony door to slide it open and let the superhero inside.

 

“So,” Ladybug began awkwardly. “I guess you didn’t post the photo?”

 

Chloe crossed her arms over her chest, letting her eyes sweep up and down Ladybug stood before her. The superhero’s uncomfortable body language was such a far cry from her usual confidence it was hard not to simply see Marinette in that moment. With a sigh, Chloe looped her arm around Ladybug’s shoulders, yanking her in for a quick selfie.

 

“You didn’t get enough photos before?” Ladybug asked, taking a second to recover from the sudden flash of the camera.

 

Chloe tossed her shiny blonde hair, flicking rapidly through the photos she’d snapped that day, her expression bored. Turning, she wagged a finger in Marinette’s face.

 

“I didn’t send the photo today,” she said shortly, punctuating the sentence with small jabs of her pointed finger. “But don’t think for one second, Marinette Dupain-Cheng, that I won’t send it in the future.”

 

Ladybug’s eyebrows knit together, her eyes flashing with annoyance.

 

“I have a duty to this city, Chloe. I have to protect the people, and I can’t do that if you’re threatening to expose me.”

 

Chloe let out a clipped laugh, her eyes rolling at the other girl’s statement.

 

“I’m not going to stop you from taking care of the pests. But don’t think you’re off the hook. There are still a few things I want from you.”

 

Chloe turned her back on Ladybug, making her way back into the suite. Ladybug followed resignedly, her feet padding softly on the rich carpet. Chloe scooped up a stack of books form her desk before making her way back over to Ladybug. Without preamble, she shoved them into the superhero’s arms. Ladybug took a small step back, clamouring to gain purchase on the books before they slipped from her grasp.

 

“What’s this?” she asked dumbly.

 

“Ummm duh! It’s my homework. I want you to do it,” Chloe replied rudely, draping herself across her sofa and resuming looking through her phone. There was a short pause as Marinette processed her words.

 

“Really?? You can’t seriously expect me to do your homework for you?” Ladybug scoffed, almost dropping the books again in her incredulity. “I thought you normally got Sabrina to do it?”

 

“Well, now I want you to do it,” Chloe responded flatly, not bothering to look up from her screen.

 

“Why?!” Ladybug asked, her tone brimming with scepticism.

 

Chloe lowered her phone, fixing Ladybug with a hard stare.

 

“Because,” she said, voice turning dark. “I may not get in your way when it comes to saving Paris, but let’s not forget who is in charge here. I want you to do my homework, and I want it to be perfect, or I may have to let slip to a particular blogger that Ladybug is much closer to her than she realises.”

 

Marinette’s jaw set, rebelliousness and reason warring between her features. Chloe could practically see her thought process as she came to a decision.

 

“Fine, Chloe,” she huffed, all but stomping back out onto the balcony. “I’ll do your homework for you this time.”

 

And without a backwards glance, she leapt from the railing, the pile of books clasped to her chest making the action somewhat cumbersome.

 

“Don’t make any mistakes!” Chloe called after her, waggling her fingers delicately.

 

Controlling Ladybug was turning out to have more than a few perks.


	4. S is for Superego

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The selfishness of Chloe's actions begin to take a toll on Ladybug.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yooo this was a hard chapter to write because I feel like I'm going too slow? But at the same time, this is kind of a pivotal chapter so things are gonna get blown WIDE open from here folks.
> 
> Let me know what you think of Chloe! I hope I'm doing her justice, I just feel like there could be so many more layers to her character!

For what was probably the millionth time that fortnight Marinette dropped her head to the desk, trying desperately to get a few seconds of shuteye. Between protecting the city, doing twice the amount of homework, AND being at Chloe’s beck and call, Marinette had barely slept and it was starting to show. Dark circles were carving themselves into permanent fixtures under her eyes, and she’d almost arrived at school in her pyjamas that morning, her father calmly steering her back into the bakery by her elbow as she’d habitually trudged out the door.

 

It was bad enough balancing her double life, but the added stress of Chloe’s dominion was starting to impact her relationships as well. Alya had been grilling her constantly about her change in attitude, and Marinette knew the wily reporter could see right through her weak excuses. And it wasn’t just her best friend, either: The rest of the class had begun to lose faith in her. Marinette had always felt like she had a responsibility to stand up for her friends, especially around bullies like Chloe, but since everyone had seen her buckle under the brat’s commands, everyone seemed to believe in her integrity a little less. She’d noticed Adrien giving her the occasional side-eye too, mild concern warping his perfect features. He probably thought she was a complete limp fish, letting Chloe push her around like she owned the place.

 

“Miss Dupain-Cheng, please take your head _off_ the desk. There will be no sleeping in my class, thank you,” Miss Bustier said calmly, her voice cutting through the fort Marinette had built with her arms.

 

The girl sluggishly lifted her head, pushing herself into an upright position whilst crushing the overwhelming urge to yawn widely.

 

“As I was saying,” continued Miss Bustier as she walked through the aisles, handing out task sheets. “The assignment is due Monday, so you’ll have all weekend to work on it. That is, unless some of you plan to sleep the entire time,” she finished shooting a teasing glance in Marinette’s direction.

 

It was only friendly banter, but Marinette slumped further down in her seat, wishing more than anything else that the chair she was sitting in would absorb her.

 

“That’s all for today, class dismissed!”

 

Chloe stood with a toss of her shiny blonde ponytail, walking down to the edge of Marinette’s desk. With a smirk, she dropped her task sheet in front of the dark-haired girl before stalking out of the classroom, nose held high.

 

“Oh! That is IT!” Alya growled in her seat.

 

The fiery redhead snatched up her bag and was halfway to barrelling out of the room in pursuit of Chloe when Marinette gently laid a hand on her shoulder.

 

“It’s okay, Alya. It doesn’t matter,” Marinette said quietly, out of fatigue more than resignation.

 

Alya’s expression twisted with a conflict of emotion and she opened her mouth to say something when-

 

“Hey, Marinette?” Came a soft voice from behind her, and Marinette spun around wide-eyed to see Adrien watching her somewhat nervously.

 

Adrien fiddled with the strap of his bag, curling the thin fabric between his fingers as he opened his mouth to speak. Marinette was so tired she barely had the energy to flail.

 

“I know Chloe can be kinda demanding sometimes, but you shouldn’t let her walk all over you, you know? I always thought it was pretty cool that you stood up to her,” Adrien said, his voice earnest.

 

Marinette heart sank with such force that she wondered how it had not fallen straight out of her chest. She opened her mouth to say something, closed it, and then opened it again. In the back of her mind she was vaguely aware that she must have looked like a goldfish out of water. Adrien’s hand light on her shoulder cut through the haze in her mind. He smiled reassuringly at her, his green eyes shining before exiting the classroom.

 

“Girl,” Alya said after the door had closed behind him. “You just had an interaction with Adrien that included like zero stuttering. I mean you didn’t really say anything but that’s progress right?”

 

Marinette was barely listening. Adrien’s words, whilst said with good intention, had cut through her like a knife. He’d said that he liked her standing up for people, that he liked her standing up to Chloe. Maybe it was because she was tired, and frustrated, and stressed, but before she could stop herself, Marinette felt the hot prickling of imminent tears flare up behind her eyes.

 

“Whoa, whoa, hey!” Alya darted in front of her, clasping her shoulders and giving her a little shake to meet her eyes. “I thought you’d be happy talking to the love of your life?”

 

Marinette swallowed a thick ball of tears that had tightened in her throat. She drew in a shuddering breath, desperately trying to compose herself before the floodgates opened. If she could just get home… Marinette grabbed the task sheets from her desk, stuffing them haphazardly into her bag.

 

“It’s fine, Alya. I’m just tired,” she offered whilst ducking her head, hoping that just this once her friend would let it go.

 

“Oh no! No no no!” Alya announced, firmly pushing Marinette back into her seat.

 

Marinette’s shoulders slumped as she exhaled heavily, her knuckles white as she gripped her bag.

 

“First you let Chloe use you as her whipping boy, then you turn up to class looking like a bomb hit you, and NOW you’re crying because Adrien spoke to you! You are going to tell me what is going on RIGHT. NOW.”

 

Alya’s tone was so insistent Marinette knew she was pissed, and not without good reason. But still, if she told Alya what was happening, even omitting the part about her being Ladybug, she knew her best friend would be on the warpath in a second, and she couldn’t risk angering Chloe.

 

“Alya, please,” Marinette whispered, her voice wrought with exhaustion and pleading. A single tear escaped her eyes as she closed them, streaking a silver path down her face, and she deftly wiped it away.

 

Alya’s expression softened at her friend’s uncharacteristic behaviour. She took in Marinette’s form for a second. The girl’s hair was messy, her pigtails puffing out like cheerleader’s pom poms. Her skin was dry and chalky pale, and if Alya wasn’t mistaken, she’d impossibly gotten thinner. Marinette had all the tell tale signs of someone under severe stress. Dropping down into a crouch in front of her, Alya gently put a hand on her knee, waiting for Marinette to open her eyes.

 

“Hey, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you,” she murmured, watching as her friend’s eyes went a little glassy at her words. “I’m just worried. You don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to.”

 

Marinette bit her lip, her thoughts wrestling with each other. After a minute, she opened her mouth to speak.

 

“Chloe’s blackmailing me.”

 

It felt good to say it out loud, to tell someone, but the following silence was palpable, and she watched as Alya’s expression morphed into one of pure rage.

 

“That little-,” she spat, her free hand balling into a fist, as if she was gearing up to punch something a lot bigger than a particular blonde teenage girl.

 

“Alya, it’s okay!” Marinette hurried to tack on, throwing her hands out in front of her in an attempt to subdue the tornado in front of her.

 

“Marinette! It is NOT okay! Chloe HAS to know this isn’t okay,” Alya argued, her tone more imploring than angry. “What does she even have on you, anyway?”

 

“I-,” Marinette struggled to speak, her throat tightening at the thought of having to lie to Alya, AGAIN. “I can’t tell you.”

 

Alya looked like she wanted to argue further, but taking in Marinette’s fraught appearance, she thought better of it.

 

“Okay. Give me that,” Alya said, slipping on of the task sheets out of Marinette’s bag.

 

“What are you doing?” Marinete cried incredulously as Alya jammed the sheet into her own bag.

 

“If I can’t know what it is, I can at least help lighten the load. Let me do this one, and try and get some rest this evening, okay?”

 

Marinette gaped at her, her eyes shining with the threat of more tears as Alya’s gesture overwhelmed her. Sensing what was about to come, Alya leant forward to draw Marinette in for a tight hug.

 

“Hey hey, no more of that,” Alya said gently as she stroked Marinette’s hair.

 

“ _You’re_ going to do Chloe’s homework?” Marinette mumbled, squashed into her friend’s shoulder.

 

“Hey, I don’t like it any more than you,” Alya said brightly, drawing back to look Marinette in the eye. “But if it’s your problem, it’s my problem too.”

 

Marinette’s smile could have melted stone.

 

“Thanks, Alya. You’re the best.”

 

A sharp chime cut through the tender moment, and Alya grabbed her phone out of her pocket, flicking to her notifications.

 

“There’s an akuma attack near the Seine!” she exclaimed, not noticing the soft groan Marinette made.

 

Alya turned back to Marinette, her eyes wide. Marinette understood perfectly.

 

“I’m fine, go!” She said, squeezing Alya’s hand reassuringly.

 

Alya grinned.

 

“ _You’re_ the best,” she responded, before grabbing her bag and practically vaulting the adjacent desk on her way out of the classroom.

 

Marinette waited until she was out of sight to open her bag, Tikki’s head surfacing from the small clasp.

 

“Looks like we’ve got a job to do,” Marinette said, though she sounded less bitter about it.

 

Tikki only gave her a cheeky wink.

 

___

 

Chloe was bored.

 

Whilst it was fun bossing Marinette about, the novelty was quickly wearing thin, and more than once Chloe had thought about sending the photo to the press just for the joy of watching the ensuing chaos, but of course then sh would have lost her leverage. Chloe huffed as she yanked dress after dress out of her cupboard, aggressively looking for a new outfit that might distract her from the looming idleness. When her closet failed to satisfy, she left the garments and shoes in a pile on the floor, the maid could just clean them up later.

 

A loud _ding_ from her phone snapped Chloe out of her downward spiral, and she quickly flicked through the alerts. An update on the Ladyblog told her there was an akuma attack currently happening by the Pont Alexandre III, and a small flash of excitement bubbled up inside Chloe. Since posting her pictures with Ladybug online, her follower count had tripled, much to her delight. It was so gratifying watching everyone vent their jealousy on her posts, knowing that they could never even begin to come close to her status. And what better way to improve the quality of the pictures than to get one right in the middle of an akuma attack. Chloe practically fell over herself in a mad dash to grab the telephone on her bedside table. Jamming the number for the front desk, Chloe tapped her foot impatiently until someone picked up. There was a click, and the concierge had barely inhaled to say hello before Chloe screamed, “GET ME A CAR, NOW!”

 

Slamming the phone back into it’s cradle, the blonde pulled on her yellow jacket, hurriedly checking her lipgloss in a passing mirror before she shot down the hallway to the lift. It took her less than two minutes to get to the lobby where she darted out the front doors. The car had barely pulled up before she threw the door open (for once not allowing the driver to do it for her) and scrambled onto the backseat.

 

“Pont Alexandre, and step on it!” she barked at the driver.

 

“But Miss Bourgeois,” he exclaimed, turning around fully in her seat to address her. “That area has been cordoned off by the police due to an attack1 I don’t think your father would like-“

 

“Ugh! What is this? Are you incompetent? You’re a driver! So _drive!_ ” Chloe screeched, the shrillness of her voice causing the driver to wince slightly.

 

Without another word, he turned back to the wheel and promptly pulled out, flawlessly navigating the roads of Paris.

 

“Can’t you drive any faster?” Chloe demanded after a few minutes, slamming the heels of her hands into the seat either side of her legs.

 

“This is the speed limit, Miss. I can’t legally drive any faster,” the driver responded, meeting her eyes through the rear view mirror.

 

Chloe grumbled, crossing her arms angrily across her chest. She all but had a fit when the car drew to a stop.

 

“What now?” she yelled, the slowness of the situation grating on her every nerve.

 

“This is as close as I can take you, Miss Bourgeois. The traffic is being redirecting,” the driver told her, genuinely looking slightly fearful of her reaction.

 

 _“Useless!”_ Chloe shrieked, throwing open the car door and taking off down the street. She could her the driver calling her name after her, but she ignored him, slipping between pulled up cars until she reached the riverbank. She could see Ladybug and Chat Noir from where she stood, the duo striking forward and faltering back in an attempt to get close to the villain. As she watched, Chloe began noticing something… off about Ladybug. Whilst the superhero was still dazzling, sharp, and tactical, she was somehow… Slower. Her attacks where sloppily executed, her reactions a second too sluggish to be normal.

 

 _Well, that’ll just make it easier to catch her,_ Chloe thought.

 

She scrambled over the railing, away from the police line, and dropped to the walkway below before sprinting under the bridge. Hooking a foot onto the metal support beam, Chloe jumped to grasp the rail above her, scraping her shoes against the perpendicular wall in an effort to pull herself onto the bridge. If she scuffed her shoes because of this, Marinette was soooooo going to buy her a new pair; she didn’t care if it bankrupted her shabby bakery. As she mounted the railing at the top of the bridge, she saw the battle in full. The akuma dressed in a luridly bright outfit, a tool belt clipped tightly around his waist. He was pulling chunks of stone and wood out of thin air, hurling them at the heroes rapidly whilst he laughed. The ferocity of the blows was practically tearing the bridge apart, the structure squeaking and groaning under the attack.

 

Chloe could see Ladybug crouched next to Chat Noir, her back rising and dropping as she panted heavily. She was holding a large magnet in one hand, her head turned to listen to whatever Chat Noir was saying. Chloe could see the strain on her face from across the bridge, and made a mental note to recommend her a better moisturiser.

 

“Ladybuuuuuug!” she called, raising her phone and waving enthusiatically at the superhero.

 

Ladybug froze at the sound, taking a second to turn round as she recognised the voice, and her eyes grew wide as she took in the sight of Chloe standing on the crumbling bridge, brandishing her phone like a madwoman.

 

“Chloe!” she exclaimed at the same time as Chat Noir, and the duo looked at each other in surprise.

 

Unfortunately, the akuma had turned at the sound of Chloe’s voice as well, and he grabbed a power drill off his belt, holding it high above his head with a wicked grin before plunging downwards, sinking the drill deep into the stone of the bridge. Large cracks splintered outwards from the power tool, cracking sporadically in a path towards Chloe. The blonde gasped, realising what was happening.

 

“Chat Noir, NOW!” Ladybug yelled, and Chat Noir lunged forward, pressing cataclysm to the clasp of the tool belt.

 

As it dropped to the floor, Ladybug pointed the magnet towards it and the belt shot towards her. Grabbing a spanner of it, Ladybug snapped the tool in half, though Chloe noticed she seemed to exert a little more effort than she usually needed to. She hurriedly purified the butterfly, barely even glancing at it as the pure white insect fluttered away. An ominously loud creak came from under Chloe’s feet, and before she could so much as take a step towards safety, the chunk of bridge that Chloe was standing on made a sickening crack, falling away from the main structure in a flurry of shrapnel. Chloe screamed, her feet coming away from the pavement as she began to free fall towards the water, a heavy chunk of stone falling after her.

 

 _“NO!”_ Ladybug screamed, and in a second, Chloe heard the comforting sound of a yoyo wire zipping towards her.

 

Chloe felt the strong wire wrap itself around her waist, launching her upwards with enough force to give her whiplash. She wailed as she flew through the air, towards what she was sure was going to be a heavy landing back on the bridge, until all at once, she felt a strong pair of arms cushion her landing. She peeked through her closed lids to see Chat Noir cradling her, worry warping his features. Oh god, was her hair a mess? Wordlessly, he put her down as the bridge gave another rumble, his eyes turning to where Ladybug was stood at the edge of the railing. His eyes widened in horror and his arm shot out to grab her across the space as he lunged forward.

“Ladybug!”

 

Ladybug had barely turned to see them before the bridge under her feet gave way, and Chloe watched as she sank towards the Seine. There was a muffled cry, a bright glow of light, and all of a sudden the bridge was restored. But not before Chloe heard a dull splash of something hitting the water. Chat Noir dashed to the railing, his eyes frantically scanning the river’s surface in search of Ladybug. Chloe made her way over, thoroughly shell shocked, and her hands trembled as they gripped her phone tight enough to almost crack the screen. Chat Noir, leapt onto the railing, his knees tilting forwards as he prepared to jump.

 

“Hey!” Chloe barked, grabbing his tail and pulling him down onto his back. “You can’t just dive in there!”

 

“I have to make sure she’s okay!” Chat Noir argued, rubbing his head as he scrambled to his feet.

 

“Ugh! She’s fine! She’s _Ladybug!_ ” Chloe responded flippantly, though something akin to worry burned at the back of her throat, making the carless tone of her voice waver.

 

“What were you doing here?” Chat Noir demanded.

 

He was angrier than she had ever seen him, and Chloe took a step back in apprehension. Chat Noir noticed the movement, and with great effort he schooled his features into something more like calm, his shoulders dropping.

 

“I- I just wanted to get a photo,” Chloe replied quietly. Even to herself in that moment, it sounded like such a stupid reason to endanger her life. But worse than that, she’d endangered Ladybug’s. For what seemed like the first time in years, Chloe felt like a very small, very stupid girl.

 

Chat Noir sighed, squeezing her shoulder lightly.

 

“I’d offer to take you home, but I really need to check that Ladybug’s okay,” he told her softly.

 

Chloe looked up at him, the strength of his presence filling her with a little courage. He had very pretty green eyes, she noticed. They’d be almost as nice as Adrien’s were it not for the green sclera. But Chloe could see in the twitchiness of his body, the effort he seemed to be exerting not to turn his head towards the river, that he was worried about his partner. He was worried about Marinette.

 

“Go ahead,” Chloe told him, squaring her shoulders and folding her arms across her chest, mustering up the biggest pout she could, though it felt more like an impression at the time.

 

Chat Noir smiled meekly at her, giving her a two-fingered salute before leaping down to the river’s walkway. Chloe looked down at her phone, the reflection of her face shining on the black screen. She looked… Worried. Chloe sniffed, giving herself a sharp shake and tossing her hair as a police officer tried to wrap her in an orange shock blanket.

 

“Get that away from me,” she said drolly. “Orange isn’t my colour.”

 

___

 

Chloe slipped into her seat behind Adrien, batting her eyelashes at him, causing him to smile nervously. Gosh he was so cute when he got shy around her! Chloe was happily applauding her effect on him that she almost missed his strained expression as he turned to face the front. Sweeping her eyes over his top half, she could see a definite tension in his shoulders, and he absent-mindedly spun his pen in his hand. That was a tick if she’d ever seen one. As the class settled, everyone dutifully responded, “present” when their name was called.

 

“Dupain-Cheng, Marinette?”

 

The silence following the name caused a genuine spike of fear through Chloe’s veins, and her head whipped towards the empty seat a row down.

 

“Marinette?” Miss Bustier called again, her eyes drifting up to the empty seat.

 

“She’s off sick today,” Alya explained, fishing for something in her bag. “I have a note from her parents,” she continued, presenting a small folded sheet of paper.

 

“Thank you, Alya,” Miss Bustier said with a small smile as she walked over to take the note, scanning it quickly.

 

“Alya!” Chloe whispered, leaning forward so that the redhead might better hear her. “Where’s Marinette?”

 

The glare Alya shot her could have blown a hole in the broad side of a barn door.

 

“Not that _you_ care,” she hissed, venom coursing through her voice even in a whisper. “But like I said, she’s sick. Seems like the work just got too much.”

 

And without sparing another glance, Alya turned back towards the front of the class, folding her arms tightly across the desk. Chloe’s thoughts raced, plotting out every possible outcome from yesterday’s events. Ladybug had saved her, she’d fallen in the river, Chat Noir had gone after her. Oh god, had he found her? What if he hadn’t found her? Had she had to fight the current of the Seine alone? What if she’d detransformed? She could have drowned! She’d have had to walk home in soaking wet clothes, she’d have gotten sick! Chloe’s fingers drummed rapidly on the desk top, and for once she didn’t care about chipping her manicure. Sabrina fluttered about by her side, asking questions, but Chloe ignored her. She was wound so tight that when the bell for lunch sounded, she practically sprang out the classroom door. Chloe had dashed down the last of the front steps before she heard a very loud, very indignant, “HEY!”

She turned to see who had the audacity to speak to her in such a tone, and was not surprised to see Alya stomping down the steps after her.

 

“Where are you going?” Alya snapped at her, sticking her chin forward unattractively.

 

“Not that it’s any of your business, but I’m going to see Marinette,” Chloe replied indignantly, cocking a hip.

 

“Ooooh no you’re not. She's sick, Chloe! Leave her alone!” the reporter huffed. She even had the nerve to stick a finger in Chloe’s face.

 

“This is between me and Marinette, Alya. It’s nothing to do with you, so go on now,” Chloe said in response, flicking Alya’s accusatory finger out of her face with a wave of her hand.

 

“This has everything to do with me if you’re upsetting my friend,” Alya insisted, eyes flashing dangerously. “I don’t know what you have over Marinette, but I’m not about to let you pick on her whilst she’s ill.”

 

Chloe felt a flash of guilt burst in her chest, and she instantly dropped her insolent stance. Alya blinked at the change in the blonde’s demeanour, the sudden lack of spite coming of the girl catching her unaware.

 

“I’m not going to bully her,” Chloe replied, her tone remarkably softer. “I’m just… I want to see when she can get back to doing my homework.”

 

Spinning on her heel, Chloe stalked towards the bakery, leaving Alya a spluttering mess in her wake. As she entered the small shop, Mrs Cheng looked up from the cashier, her expression turning to outright disbelief as her mind absorbed who had just stepped inside. Well it’s not everyday a common bakery was graced with the presence of the mayor’s daughter after all.

 

“Mrs Cheng?” Chloe asked, more out of obligatory manners than actual politeness. “I’m here to see Marinette.”

 

“Oh!” Sabine responded, clasping her hands stiffly. “You’re… Chloe, right? Marinette’s not too well at the moment, I don’t think visitors are such a good idea.”

 

Chloe could see the reluctance in the woman’s body language. No doubt Marinette had spent years poisoning her parents opinion of her. Chloe needed a distraction. Turning to take in the vast baked treats around her, she quickly zoned in on the biggest, most delicately decorated four-tier wedding cake. It really was quite beautiful: The cake was coloured in gradually darkening icing, the base a cool yellow moving up to white at the top. There were small glittery leaves surrounding elegantly crafted flowers that scaled the structure in a winding pattern, punctuated by lacy rice paper butterflies.

 

“Wow! I love the craftsmanship on this!” she exclaimed in her most awed voice, holding a hand daintily in front of her mouth as she gasped.

 

Sabine took the bait, smiling proudly.

 

“Oh yes! That’s once of Tom’s best pieces. My husband has an eye for detail,” she replied, her happiness shining through her eyes.

 

For a split second, Chloe missed her mother. She remembered how she used to smile… Chloe firmly pushed the memory into a box in the back of her head.

 

“How much is it?” she asked curiously.

 

“That cake is one of our more expensive pieces,” Sabine began cautiously. When Chloe continued staring at her expectantly, she elaborated. “The price is currently set at €600.”

 

“I’ll take it,” Chloe responded immediately, and Sabine’s eyes flew wide.

 

“Heaven’s, are you sure you want a wedding cake?” she asked astonished, hands flying to her mouth.

 

“Of course! It would look great in our hotel, and I love cake,” Chloe asserted, though she knew that she hadn’t touched cake since she was a child.

 

Digging in her purse, she whipped out her credit card.

 

“You can charge it to this, and I’d like it delivered to my hotel if possible,” she asked cordially, dazzling Sabine with he sweetest smile.

 

Sabine blinked, gingerly extending her hand to take the credit card.

 

“Chloe, are you really sure you want-“

 

“Absolutely!” Chloe interrupted, smoothly side stepping the small woman. “I’ll just leave you to box it up for now!” she called over her shoulder, and before Sabine could argue, Chloe darted up the stairs into the small apartment.

 

Flipping the trapdoor to Marinette’s room open, Chloe clambered inside, shutting the flap firmly after her.

 

“Marinette!” she called into the open space.

 

From the small lodging above her, Chloe heard an exasperated groan. Chloe’s pulse faltered, and she scaled the ladder into the alcove. A huge fluffy duvet sat in a large soft blob in the middle of the small bed, shaking slightly. Without any further thought, Chloe ripped the duvet off the bed to expose one very pale, very much alive, and VERY sick Marinette.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know that some of you may be getting impatient at how slow this redemption thing is...  
> But please consider that Chloe just paid €600 to make sure that Marinette was okay.
> 
> Yeah. Think about that.


	5. P is for Petulance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chloe begins to realise the weight of her actions, and how they affect the people around her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm actually really enjoying writing Chloe. I think under all that vapidness there's a complex system of cogs and screws that have her wound extremely tight, and it's interesting to dismantle her character. (Also I finally worked out how to format my docs properly XD)
> 
> Without giving away too much, there's gonna be a big twist of fate in the next chapter which I can't wait to write, 'cause that's when things are gonna get serious and we'll see Chloe's true nature come to surface :P

The sanctuary of Marinette’s duvet igloo was harshly interrupted by her extremely unwelcome guest. No sooner had Chloe ripped the covers away from her than she settled her hands on her hips, fixing the sick girl with a thoroughly unimpressed expression.

“Marinette!” Chloe barked, the high pitch of her voice feeling like a dull knife pushing itself through Marinette’s skull. “What on earth are you doing?”

Marinette reluctantly uncurled herself from the foetal position she’d been coiled into, blinking against the sudden burst of light. The absence of her duvet was causing chills to jitter through her bones, and her body trembled like a paint mixer.

“Chloe?” she managed to croak, voice as rough as gravel. “What are you doing here?

Chloe huffed as if the answer to Marinette’s question was the most obvious thing in the world.

“You weren’t at school today, Marinette! What was I _supposed_ to do? Wait for my homework to be delivered?” she replied petulantly.

Chloe was tapping her Jimmy Choos impatiently, and Marinette felt as if the noise was thump-thump-THUMPING its way inside her brain. She weakly wrapped her arms around her head in defence, hoping to dull the steady throb in her ears.

“I’m sorry, Chloe. I’m REALLY sick,” Marinette explained, not lifting her head to look at the other girl.

The tap of Chloe’s foot sped up, and Marinette swore she could actually feel her brain pushing against the inside of her skull. She groaned weakly, closing her eyes as she tried to focus on something else.

“And what happened to you yesterday?” Chloe demanded, completely oblivious to the state of Marinette’s crumbling away before her. “Ladybug fell off that bridge and then just _disappeared!_ She didn’t talk to the paparazzi or anything!”

Marinette groaned again, uncoiling her arms to look at Chloe, though the movement made her eyeballs ache.

“Chloe,” she began hoarsely. “I _AM_ Ladybug! Stop talking about me in the third person. It’s weird.”

Chloe barely gave Marinette a once-over before giving the girl a dismissive sniff.

“I want an explanation, Marinette!” she forged on, as if she hadn’t even heard the confession.

“Well… I fell in the Seine-“

“No not about that. About my homework!” Chloe interrupted, her eyes narrowing with impatience.

Marinette blinked incredulously and immediately winced. Pulling her facial features into an expression of such bewilderment had sent a serious jab of pain through her frontal lobe. In exasperation, she pinched the bridge of her nose.

“How did you even get up here?” she muttered under her breath.

“Oh I bought that cake and told your mother to box it up for me,” Chloe explained curtly, examining her cuticles.

Marinette’s head snapped up immediately, ignoring her protesting headache. Chloe’s eyes locked with her at the sudden movement.

“You… bought the… You bought Papa’s wedding cake??” Marinette asked, her disbelief somehow succeeding in bypassing the hoarseness of her voice.

“Of course I did,” Chloe replied with a toss of her shiny blonde hair. “I needed a distraction.”

Marinette blinked again, very slowly, letting the words sink through the thrumming in her skull to settle at the base of her cerebral cortex.

“Chloe…” she whispered, the new information grinding it’s way through her circuits. “That… That will set us up for months!”

Chloe frowned at Marinette’s words, and for a split second the dark-haired girl thought she saw something cross her heavily made up face. It was gone in an instant, and the blonde gave herself a small shake before breaking out into an unattractive sneer.

“€600? Really? You must really be poor!” she mocked, letting out a peal of sharp laughter that sounded more like a witch’s cackle than anything.

Marinette let herself slump. Had she really been expecting anything different? Of course Chloe’s was going to look down her nose at the Dupain-Cheng’s financial situation. It wasn’t like she’d ever had to cut back on spending in order to afford hot water. Marinette’s face suddenly flushed as a fresh wave of chills racked her small frame, and her throat constricted viciously. She doubled over on her bed, raucous coughs jumping out of her at a staccato rhythm as she clutched her angrily camping stomach. Chloe recoiled instantly, pressing herself as far away from Marinette as she could in the small alcove.

“EW! Marinette! GROSS!” she whined, whipping a bottle of over-priced hand sanitizer out of her bag and pumping it furiously into her open palm.

But Marinette barely noticed over the sharp spasms that were wrenching their way up her oesophagus. Finally managing to get a hold of herself, she drew in one long rattling breath, letting her body go limp as the last of the coughing fit left her twitching muscles. Through her half-lidded eyes, Marinette could have sworn she saw a look of genuine concern cross the blonde’s face.

 _Probably a fever dream,_ she told herself faintly.

“Ugh,” Chloe said after a few moments, though her noise of disgust somehow lacked its usual forcefulness. “Just give me my homework back, I don’t want you getting disgusting germs all over it.”

Marinette shook her head almost imperceptibly.

“Alya has it,” she explained quietly, attempting to pull herself back into a sitting position.

Chloe opened her mouth to say something when a loud beeping came from both girls’ phones. Chloe pulled hers out to tap heatedly at the screen. Marinette glared at hers sitting innocently at the end of the bed, as if she were attempting to dissolve it with nothing but her mind.

“No way! _Another_ akuma attack? There was one just yesterday!” Chloe exclaimed contemptuously, flicking her fingers to the side as if she were warding off a fly.

Marinette could have cried, she really could have. At Chloe’s words, she feebly pawed at the duvet, dragging it back over her shivering form until she was once again wound tightly into a Marinette-shaped burrito. She wished she could put the whole world on pause, just until she felt better. She wanted Chloe to stop yelling at her, she wanted to curl up in a ball until her brain stop trying to crawl out through her ears, and above all else she desperately, _desperately_ wanted for there to be no akuma attacks.

“What do you think you are doing?” Chloe snapped at her suddenly, breaking off her rant about Paris going to the dogs.

She attempted to pull the covers back of the sick girl, but Marinette was prepared, clutching the fabric tenaciously against the assault.

“Well?” Chloe barked, her voice rising in tandem with the force of her yanking on the sheet. “What are you waiting for? Ladybug has to go an cleanse the akuma!”

Marinette’s groan was long and drawn out as the blonde finally gained the upper hand, wrestling the covers away from her. Chloe stepped forward as if she was about to shove the girl off the bed, but she seemed to suddenly remember Marinette’s coughing fit, and silently she curled her outstretched claws back in towards her body.

“Chloe. Third Person. Again,” Marinette said, her voice coming out stronger than she had thought possible at this time.

Chloe placed her hands on her hips again, pouting hard, her pale lip gloss creasing together in irritation.

“And I want another photo before you leave.”

At that, Marinette sat up sharply, though the action sent a wave of nausea rolling through her.

“Ugh, you just think it’s so easy don’t you?” she cried, her hands twisting the bed sheet as she clenched her fists. “That Ladybug and Chat Noir just show up, cleanse the akuma, and continue on our merry way. You don’t even think that we might get hurt.”

Chloe took a step back at the outburst, her hands held up instinctively to protect herself.

“We risk our _lives_ , Chloe! Being Ladybug isn’t an easy job, and I can’t do it properly if I’ve got you pulling me in five different directions!”

The girls’ phones beeped simultaneously again, and Chloe’s eyes snapped down towards her screen as a new notification popped up on the Ladyblog. Marinette sighed loudly, wiping a thin sheen of cold sweat from her brow.

“Just wait here, I’ll be back in a minute,” she said wearily, and with that she clambered out onto the terrace, leaving a wholly shocked Chloe in her wake.

 

__

 

Chloe could all but feel the plush leather of her limo seat melting underneath her expensively clothed posterior as she simmered away. How dare Marinette Dupain-Cheng of all people speak to her like that? Especially when she knew what Chloe had over her. The blonde ground her teeth and angrily scrolled through the Ladyblog. The akuma attack was still going on and Alya had somehow managed to set up a livestream through Nadja Chamack’s camera crew, meaning that the whole of Paris was watching Ladybug flail live in painfully detailed HD. Even from the camera’s safely distanced viewpoint, Chloe could see the sluggish movement through the superhero’s limbs, the way she winced as if someone had lanced her skull every time there was a particularly loud impact. Chat Noir kept slipping her worried glances as he did his best to deflect the majority of attacks, attempting to draw the akumas attention to anything other than the severely compromised Ladybug.

By the time Chloe’s driver had gotten there, the superhero team had managed to locate and cleanse the akuma, though Chloe knew from watching the feed that the majority of the battle was fought by Chat Noir. The press was already closing in around them, and the heiress could see Chat Noir saying something very serious to the zealous reporters, Ladybug standing a little way off behind him. She wore a dazed expression on her face, and her body swayed so precariously in the breeze that Chloe thought she would topple over at any moment. For a second, she saw nothing but Marinette, tripping over in the hall way, falling down the aisle steps in class, clumsily slipping on something as she rushed to get to lessons on time. The sight of Ladybug appearing so thoroughly disorientated momentarily blurred the lines between the two worlds, and Chloe felt a cold wash of some foreign emotion spread through her like a drop of ink hitting a tank of water. She shook the feeling off. Such emotions were for the lower classes.

Chat Noir turned away from the press, making his way back over to Ladybug where he wrapped his hands gently around her upper arms to steady her. Ladybug’s eyes slowly came back into focus, and she seemed to be making an extraordinary amount of effort to focus on what he was saying. Chloe approached the two of them, catching the leather-clad hero’s words as she came into earshot.

“-worried about you. You haven’t been yourself lately, My Lady. And yesterday, when you fell off the bridge? Did you get sick?”

Chloe could see honest concern clouding his eyes, his shoulders set stiffly as he searched Ladybug’s face for answers.

“I’m fine, Chat. It’s just a cold,” Ladybug replied with a frail smile, and she lifted her hand to squeeze his wrist reassuringly.

Before Chloe could get to them, Ladybug turned and launched her yoyo towards a chimney. She zipped off the ground at an awkward angle, almost knocking into a balcony before she corrected herself with a giddy “Oops!”

Chat Noir stood a moment, gazing after, apprehension and stress etching themselves into his features.

“You shouldn’t frown, Chat Noir, you’ll get wrinkles,” Chloe said as she reached him, crossing her arms over her chest and cocking and eyebrow.

Chat Noir turned to face her at the sound of his name, his eyes taking a moment to focus as if he’d been looking right through her.

“Chloe…” he murmured after a moment, recognition contracting his slit pupils.

“I’m sure she’s fine,” Chloe told him haughtily, tucking a stray wisp of hair behind her ear. Obviously she would know, Ladybug was her best friend after all.

Chat Noir didn’t respond, turning back to where Ladybug had departed, his eyes searching for something more than the cracked brick of the buildings. Chloe didn’t think his next words were meant for her to hear, but they struck an icy chill through her veins as Chat Noir spoke.

“I’m really worried about her.”

Chloe froze. If Chat Noir was worried about Ladybug…

“You should get back to school.”

Chloe blinked, Chat Noir’s voice yanking her out of her uncharacteristic reverie.

“I… Yes. Yes, fine, I’m going,” Chloe stuttered out, turning on her heel before the boy could say another word. It wasn’t like she was going to let him tell her what to do, and she was headed that way anyway.

She spun her phone anxiously in her hand, Chat Noir’s words spinning round in her head like horses on a custom-designed carousel. Ladybug was sick because she fell in the river, because she was protecting Chloe, because she was too slow, because she was _tired._ And she was tired because Chloe was making Marinette do her assignments. The realisation of the ripple effect of her actions were having hit Chloe in a flash of irritation and something else… Something almost like… Guilt? With one last agitated spin of the slim device, Chloe tapped out a message on the screen and hit _envoyer_.

 

**TO: Marinette**

**Sabrina will be doing my homework from now on. She does it better than you anyway.**

 

And with that, Chloe settled herself comfortably into the back of her limo, content in the knowledge that she was helping Paris’ favourite superhero do her job. She was _such_ a good friend.

 


	6. L is for Lapse

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Though Chloe begins to change her behaviour, things take a dark turn for Marinette in other ways.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Woah this chapter was a doozy!!! Tried to weave in some LadyNoir for all you shippers, but I can't wait to write the next chapter. It's really gonna test Chloe's strength of character :D

Adrien was a little brighter at school the following day, though Chloe couldn’t help but notice the hairline whispers of stress around his features. Well, it wasn’t easy being a model – he probably just had his schedule full and wasn’t getting enough sleep. Chloe made a mental note to buy him some expensive moisturiser before his frowning gave him wrinkles. Her childhood friend greeted Nino as he sat down in front of her, his megawatt smile lighting up the whole room despite the note of strain behind it.

“Dude, what happened to lunch yesterday? I thought we were supposed to hang out at the park?” Nino asked lightly, clapping his friend on the shoulder.

“Yeah, sorry Nino,” Adrien replied, guiltily scratching the back of his head, and Chloe had to reign in the urge to slap his hand away. “I had to dash home for something.”

“No worries, man,” Nino replied with a grin that Chloe thought was much to garish. “We can always go today.”

Adrien gave Nino a grateful smile just as the classroom door swung open, allowing none other than Marinette to step over the threshold. Though she still looked a little weary, and her skin was in _desperate_ need of healthy dousing of blush, she was at least present and her eyes looked bright and alert unlike the hazy half-lidded state they had been yesterday. She made her way over to her desk, giving Nino a little half-wave as she passed, though Chloe noticed she made a particular effort to avoid eye contact with Adrien.

 

_Good,_ thought Chloe possessively. _At least she knows her place where my Adrikins is concerned._

As Marinette slipped into her seat, one of her annoyingly fluffy pigtails sliding back over her shoulder, and Chloe’s eyes instantly locked onto the side of her jawbone. Anyone else looking most likely wouldn’t have noticed anything out of the ordinary, but years of checking the evenness of her own skin tone in a gold-framed mirror had fine-tuned Chloe’s ability to spot imperfections, something that at that moment allowed her to spot the faint purple tinge of bruised skin that skimmed the edge of Marinette’s jaw just below her ear. Chloe thought back to yesterday’s akuma attack, her mental image scrubbing through the events she watched on livestream as she tried to pinpoint the source of the injury. Though she couldn’t put her finger on an exact point, Chloe had seen Ladybug take a few more hits than usual, and her spite for Marinette wavered like a rod of bamboo bending in the wind.

“Are you alright?” The words were out of Chloe’s mouth before she could stop them.

The soft chatter that had been filling the classroom fell into a dead silence as the entire class turned to stare at Chloe, their mouths open and their eyes wide. Even Adrien had twisted around in his seat to look at her, somehow failing to keep the shocked expression from colouring his features (something Chloe would get insulted about later). Marinette turned round to face the blonde slowly, her movements almost autonomous with stiffness, as if she couldn’t quite believe it was Chloe who had just addressed her.

“… What?” She said intelligently.

Chloe sniffed: How on earth had _Marinette_ become the saviour of Paris?

“I said,” she began haughtily, raising her voice slightly as she leaned forward on the desk to rest her chin in her cupped hands. _“Are you alright?”_

Marinette couldn’t even seem to blink. Instead she gaped at the blonde, her jaw moving up and down as if she were trying to exhale her words into smoke rings.

“I-Yes! Yes, I’m fine!” she spluttered, trying desperately to gain some composure.

“Good,” was all Chloe offered in response, and without another word she pulled an iPad out of her bag to distract herself from the watchful gaze of her peers. The ambience of classroom conversation didn’t actually return, though the sound of hastened whispers bounced off the walls as everyone ducked their heads to fervently discuss what had just happened. Chloe raised her eyes from the iPad screen to see Adrien still watching her, and surprised crease creating a little groove between his eyes.

“That was… really nice of you, Chloe,” he said, sounding both awed and confused.

“Well obviously,” Chloe replied, putting down the iPad to flash him her cheeriest smile, one she usually reserved for getting something out of her father.

Crossing her wrists on the desktop, she leaned forward to purr, “I am sooooo charitable that way.”

Chloe didn’t miss the way Adrien leaned back a fraction in his seat, away from her mild advance, and the smile he gave her in response looked a little guilty.

_Of course, he feels bad that he underestimated my kindness,_ Chloe thought to herself, feeling thoroughly satisfied with her own explanation.

Glancing back at Marinette, she scrutinized the dark haired girl for any other evidence of injury. Besides the occasional shaking of her hands, most likely caused by fatigue, Marinette was her usual self: Hopelessly ditzy and impossibly clumsy. Chloe tapped the nail of her index finger agitatedly on the desktop so hard that Sabrina had to warn her about chipping her fresh manicure. She dismissed her friend with a huff, shifting her weight back in her seat to cross her arms over her chest. Sabrina looked as if she was about to say something, but instead thought better of it and went back to taking two sets of notes. Chloe continued to glare at the back on Marinette’s head, an action that didn’t go unnoticed by half the class as they frequently stole glances in her direction. Chloe ignored them – she was far too classy to provoke gossip amongst the commoners. Something very VERY irritating had gotten under her skin since yesterday. She didn’t know if it was Chat Noir’s words or the flash of recognition for Marinette she’d experienced whilst watching Ladybug totter on her feet, but as she watched the girl she’d despised since they’d met chatter cordially with Alya, a steady realisation began to creep its way into her mind.

Marinette was Ladybug.

It sounded stupid to say it to herself when she’d already known, but watching the other girl in class was making Chloe begin to wonder how she managed it. And by that she meant ALL of it: Not only did Marinette have to work part-time in that dingy bakery of hers, but she had school as well, and on top of all of that she had to periodically save Paris from attacks by supervillains. With all those things added together, she was probably even busier than Adrien with his many photo shoots and extracurricular activities. How did she manage to keep up her grades? When did get time to sleep? And how did she manage to pull off all those acrobatic feats when she could barely walk down the corridor without stumbling. Chloe was so chewed up in her own train of thought that she forgot to pick up her bag when the bell for break sounded. She swept out of the classroom without a backwards glance, barely paying attention to Sabrina scuttling after her with a tinkling cry of, “Chloe! I’ve got your bag for you!”

She was on the phone in seconds, demanding to be put through to various physicians and _NO I will NOT hold!!_

As if she had time to waste - Ladybug needed her.

“Yes, and please charge that to Mr. Bourgeois, the MAYOR OF PARIS,” she said firmly into the receiver, and with that, she hung up before the person on the other end of the line could utter so much as a syllable in protest.

 

__

 

Patrol that evening wasn’t hugely eventful. Marinette swung around the rooftops, taking the few seconds for which she hung high in the air to admire the twinkling lights of the Parisian skyline. After half an hour, she met up with Chat Noir in their usual spot on the higher tier of the Eiffel Tower. Marinette sighed happily – The Eiffel Tower had always been her favourite landmark in the city, but nothing could really beat the view from it. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Chat Noir watching her closely, a slight edge tainting his otherwise kind smile.

“What’s up, _minou_?” she asked, sitting down on the rough metal and allowing her legs to dangle over the pavement far below.

“How are you doing?” Chat Noir asked softly, taking a seat by her side.

His blonde hair glowed pink with the reflected city lights, making his green eyes stand out that much more, and his belt-tail twitched anxiously.

“I’m alright, what about yourself?” Marinette asked casually, giving a small smile.

The corners of her mouth dropped slightly when she saw the look he was giving her. His eyes gazed at her imploringly as she seemed to watch her every action, looking for some giveaway action that would confirm something for him.

“Really, Ladybug, what’s going on? You haven’t been yourself lately and I’m concerned,” he continued, refusing to budge from the topic.

“You don’t have to worry about me, _chaton_ ,” Marinette said airily, giving him a friendly wink in an attempt to lighten the sombre mood this conversation had taken. The last thing she needed was Chat Noir asking questions.

“I’m not just worried about you,” Chat forged on, taking one of her hands in his and placing his other hand over the top as he regarded her steadily. “I’m worried about the citizens of Paris. If something is throwing you off your game, it’s inadvertently putting them at risk.”

Marinette sighed at his logic – he was right, of course, and it was jut like her partner to think of everyone else as well as her. That was something she had always admired about him. Squeezing the hand he held hers with, Marinette gave him a reassuring smile.

“I’m okay, really. I’ve just had… A lot to deal with lately,” she offered by way of explanation. Marinette was painfully aware of her words when talking about her personal life, she didn’t want to say too much lest she let something slip that would give away her identity.

“Do you want to talk about it?” Chat said immediately, and Marinette felt her heart warm - ever the supportive partner was he.

“Not really. I’ve just been put in a bit of a difficult position recently,” she explained vaguely, hoping that he would understand.

Marinette knew he wanted to help and she really appreciated it, but the way things were at the moment with Chloe pulling her left right and centre, she wanted more than anything to keep her dual lives in their split categories. Letting Chat know the details was too much of a risk, and the last thing she needed on top of the whole ordeal was the fear of endangering her partner. She let her shoulders sag as the mental list of responsibilities and priorities piled up in her mind, and she lifted one leg to wrap her arms around it, propping her chin up on her knee.

“Then why don’t I talk?” Chat Noir said after it became apparent that Ladybug wasn’t going to say anymore.

He was trying to shift the atmosphere, Marinette noticed, as if he had realised that he was making her uncomfortable.

“A friend of mine hasn’t been acting like herself recently,” he began, staring thoughtfully out over the city.

“Chat if this is a metaphor-“

“No no it’s not!” he interrupted with a small chuckle. “And no names, I promise!” he added hastily, throwing up a hand to silence Ladybug when he saw her open her mouth to protest.

“She’s kind, and loyal, and she’s always ready to stick up for people,” he said softly, a gentle smile barely whispering over his lips. “But recently she’s hasn’t been doing that as much, and I wonder if it has something to do with the person she’s letting getting to her.”

Chat’s eyes turned sad, and Marinette felt an overwhelming urge to hug him. Sometimes it struck her just how big his heart was.

“Well if she’s as fearless as you claim, I’m sure she’ll come to her senses. Especially if she’s got a friend like you watching out for her,” Marinette responded, punching him playfully in the arm.

Chat grinned at her, giving her a half-hearted punch back.

“She actually didn’t like me when we first met, would you believe?” he asked, his expression turning nostalgic.

“No, really? I can’t imagine why with all those cheesy pick-up lines,” Marinette replied, gasping in mock horror as she lifted her hands to her mouth.

“I’ll have you know that my pick-up lines are extremely tasteful,” Chat pointed out with a cheeky wink, and Marinette couldn’t help herself from rolling her eyes.

His grin turned wistful for a second, and something strange passed across his face.

“I actually think she doesn’t really like me now,” he murmured, and Marinette wasn’t sure if he’d been talking more to himself or not.

Consolingly, she put a hand on his shoulder, giving him a gentle tug in her direction so that he would meet her eyes.

“I can’t believe that,” Marinette said kindly, letting her genuine love for her partner’s selflessness pour out through her smile like a song, sweet and embracing.

Chat’s eyes glittered in the night as he turned to face her, and his face melted into an expression so honestly grateful that Marinette felt her heart throb a little in her chest.

“Thanks, Ladybug,” he told her quietly, reaching up to his shoulder in order to place a hand over hers.

“Well, I’d best be getting home!” Marinette announced, standing up briskly after the moment eased on a couple seconds too long to be merely friendly.

The sudden shift in atmosphere left Chat blinking stupidly for a second, giving Ladybug enough time to leap off the tower with a hearty, “Next time, _minou!_ ” and swing away into the night. She was going to have to work on her tact.

 

__

 

Marinette awoke the next morning to an absolute raucous in the bakery. The sound of clattering pans and raised voices played her a symphonic introduction to the morning as she trudged down the stairs into the small shop floor. She was greeted with the sight of several couriers trying to push their way past the brick house that was her father, each scrambling to slip past him with their arms full of various hampers and materials.

“I’m telling you, I didn’t order any of these things!” Tom insisted, swatting at a courier who was attempting to sidestep his large frame.

One of the deliverymen spotted Marinette and waved frantically at her, his eyes widening with fervour.

“Miss Dupain-Cheng!” he cried, twisting at an alarming angle to avoid dropping the hamper he was carrying.

Marinette froze as all the couriers simultaneously zeroed in on her, each flailing to get her attention as they called out her name, their arms coming dangerously close to knocking over several pastry stands in their desperation.

“Miss Marinette Dupain-Cheng?” one of them enquired, his arms wrapped around a fluffy bundle.

“Errr, yep! That’s me!” Marinette replied nervously. She crossed her arms behind her back, her shoulders habitually creeping up to her ears as she gave the entourage a sheepish grin. One of the scrawnier couriers managed to slip by her father as a toppling tower of pain au raisin distracted him, practically skipping over to where Marinette stood perplexed.

“Miss Dupain-Cheng, please sign here,” he said, pushing a clipboard and pen at her.

Marinette had to unclasp her hands from behind her back as he let go, rushing to catch the two items before they fell.

“What is all of this?” she asked incredulously, holding the pen point over the clipboard as she tried to take in just what the many men were carrying.

“Special order, at the request of Mayor Bourgeois. To be delivered post-haste!” the small courier replied chirpily, looking as if he wanted to reach out and shove the pen down onto the paper to make Marinette sign faster.

He was bobbing up and down so much he was practically vibrating, and Marinette bit her lip anxiously before deciding to put him out of his misery. She swept her hand over the form, dotting her name with a little heart before the courier practically whisked it out of her hands, replacing the clipboard with the basket he’d been carrying. With the confirmation of her signature, the other men managed to push past her father, marching their way upstairs into the house. Marinette had a sudden horrible realisation that they would see all of her posters of Adrien, but they were up in her room before she could rush ahead of them. If they noticed, they didn’t say anything, and Marinette shot up the ladder into her room after them. Though it was cramped with so many people, the deliverymen made fast work of arranging the various items about the small space, giving Marinette a chance to assess exactly what was being delivered. Her eyes blew wide as she mentally calculated the price tag that came with all of it, coming up with a figure that was higher than what their bakery made in an average week. Set about her room were stacks of hand-hemmed cashmere blankets, unique-smelling medical herbs and plants, hamper upon hamper of health foods and supplements, soft down pillows, a foam roller (which Marinette silently couldn’t wait to use), a cooler of expensive energy drinks whose labels promised a high volume of vitamins and minerals, a range of Chanel makeup that she doubted she’d have time to use, as well as a fat wad of vouchers for various spa and chiropractic treatments. The sheer volume of items alone was enough to make her floor space even tighter than it already was, though the parade of couriers making their way back down the ladder did manage to free up some space. One of the couriers turned to her as the rest of his party made their way out through the shop. In one hand, he extended a large thermos, waiting patiently for Marinette to take it. In the other he held a small tightly sealed envelope.

“This is Matzo Ball soup, Miss. I’ve been told to tell you to drink it immediately. You don’t have to finish it all in one go, but you should keep what’s left in the fridge and reheat thoroughly before consuming again,” he explained mechanically, enunciating each word carefully as if he weren’t sure that Marinette could understand him.

“This is for you to read also,” he continued, holding out the envelope.

“Oh… If it’s post you can just give it to my parents,” Marinette replied, still struggling to absorb the quantity and quality of things now in her room.

“I’m sorry, but you misunderstand,” the courier replied curtly, leaning forward to give her a meaningful look as he lowered his voice. “I was instructed to give this _directly to you_ , Miss Dupain-Cheng.”

Marinette leaned back, intimidated by the large man, only to gain composure and daintily extended a hand to pluck the envelope out of the courier’s grasp, watching as he straightened up with a short nod. Turning, he made his way back down to the bakery, Marinette’s watching him go, thoroughly surprised at the whole course of events. Taking a few seconds, she carefully slipped a finger under the edge of the envelope flap, pulling her nail along the top and slipping out the small card. She could barely comprehend the gold ink words written in curly script.

 

_Ladybug is useless if she’s sick._

Marinette read the card once, twice, closed it, and then opened it to read the words a third time. What did that courier say? Special order from Mayor Bourgeois?

And then it hit her: _Chloe._

Chloe was worried about her being sick. Wait, no. She was worried about _Ladybug_ being sick. And by proxy, that meant she was trying to boost Marinette’s health.

Marinette felt her legs wobble slightly, thankful that she was standing near her desk as she sank ungracefully into her swivel chair. Tikki popped out from where she had been hiding behind a cat plushie.

“Boy, that was a close one! I thought one of those men was going to find me behind the pillow! Tikki exclaimed.

When Marinette didn’t react, she swooped down to read the card still dangling from her charge’s fingers.

“No way!” she cried in her squeaky voice, her big eyes somehow managing to get even bigger with disbelief. “Chloe sent you all this stuff?”

“I guess she did,” Marinette managed to say, the thought still rattling around her brain. It was like trying to shove a square peg into a round hole – the thought of Chloe buying her something alone, much less actually caring about her just didn’t seem to fit together.

“This is good news, Marinette!” Tikki assured, flying into the girl’s blank eye line. “This means she’s starting to care about you!”

“She cares about _Ladybug,_ Tikki,” Marinette argued with a small sigh.

Her head still felt a little swim-y from her sickness, and the inconceivable thought of Chloe being concerned about anyone other than herself was hardly helping.

“Yes! And _you’re_ Ladybug!” Tikki exclaimed joyously, flying in happy little circles around Marinette’s head.

Marinette couldn’t help but smile at the kwami’s enthusiasm, even though she was still having trouble wrapping her head around the notion. The metallic squeak of someone climbing the ladder alerted them both to someone entering her room, and Tikki quickly shot back into her hiding place behind the small cushion. Marinette yanked open her desk drawer, shoving the note all the way to the back and slamming it closed before her parent’s heads popped into the room.

“My goodness, what is all this?” her mother gasped, taking in the volume of items that peppered the available surfaces in the packed space as Marinette placed the thick thermos on her desktop.

“Err…” Marinette began eloquently, rubbing the back of her head nervously as she tried to come up with an explanation. “They’re from Chloe.”

Both her parent’s heads snapped towards her incredulously, and Marinette shrank into the chair, pulling her knees up to her chest. Tom and Sabine looked at each other in utter confusion, but seeing their daughter cringe into her furniture encouraged them not to question too much.

“I guess you’re finally becoming friends,” Tom said happily after a few seconds of awkward silence.

Marinette had to keep her nose from wrinkling at the thought.

“What’s in the thermos, sweetie?” asked her mother curiously.

“Matzo Ball soup,” Marinette replied automatically, parroting what the courier had told her. She couldn’t quite raise her eyes to meet her mother’s gaze.

“How on earth did Chloe manage to find that in Paris?” her mother breathed, and Marinette didn’t have to see the woman’s reaction in order to hear the wonder in her voice. Finally looking up, she offered them both a meek smile as they exited her room, their expression happy if not still at a complete loss.

After the hatch had closed, Marinette eyed the thermos as if it were a bomb about to go off. What was so special about Matzo Ball soup? Inquisitively, she unscrewed the top of the thermos, using it as a cup for her to pour the soup into. As the hot liquid poured out, the scent immediately washed over her, making her mouth water in anticipation. A splash interrupted her and she looked down to see a few dumplings floating in the cup. Setting the thermos back down on the desk, Marinette blew over the soup to cool in slightly before pressing her lips to the rim and sucking in a small mouthful. The flavour burst over her tongue immediately, and Marinette felt warmth wash through her entire body, pouring through her veins like liquid sunshine. She had no idea what the soup was made out of, but she would be lying if she didn’t say that she immediately felt ounces better. The ache in her muscles seemed to ease slightly, and the waft of aroma spiralling up from the cup soothed the back of her throat as she inhaled.

 

Okay. So being “friends” with Chloe was turning out to have a few perks.

 

__

 

School hadn’t been completely terrible since Chloe had sent over her mountain of “get well” remedies. Even though she refused to change seats, and she still insisted on having regularly scheduled events with Ladybug, things hadn’t been nearly as been as when she’d first found out Marinette’s identity. And whilst taking “selfie sessions” with Chloe left Marinette feeling as if she’s had her soul forcibly sucked out of her body, the chiropractic appointments she’d managed to redeem when she had a spare chance had saved her body a great deal of aches and pains. Marinette still tried to avoid enraging her lest she send the photo to the papers like she’d threatened, but unfortunately that meant allowing Chloe to stomp all over her classmates, and the looks of betrayal she got from her peers every time she failed to stand up for them felt like a knife twisting in her gut.

It was also getting increasingly difficult to explain to Chat why there was a sudden influx of photographs of her taken with her “BFF”, he seemed to chalk it up to civic duty, even though Marinette still caught him giving Ladybug weird looks when he thought she wouldn’t notice.

“Since when did you and Chloe get so close?” he asked, raising one masked eyebrow at her.

Marinette groaned, her eyes rolling back into her head, and Chat Noir uttered a surprised chuckle.

“We’re not! She just… She manages to keep finding me, it’s hard to say no to such a big fan,” she lied, hoping her weary tone would be enough to ward him away from making any further enquiries.

“You could always just yoyo away?” he suggested, cocking a smirk.

Ladybug leaned in close, hoping to distract him from his inquisition, watching with a satisfied hum under her skin as his eyes widened at her proximity and a faint tinge of pink blossomed under his obscured cheekbones.

“What like this?” she whispered wickedly, and with that she zipped away, leaving him dazed.

Once after a particularly vicious akuma attack, she’d enquired after his friend since he’d seemed so down about it.

“Oh, I haven’t really spoken to her much,” Chat Noir admitted, tapping his chin thoughtfully with his clawed index finger. “But she doesn’t seem as stressed out as she was?”

He phrased it like a question, and Marinette wondered whether he was paying particularly close attention to his friend or not.

“You should talk to her, I’m sure she’d appreciate it,” Ladybug assured him, giving him a little wave as her earrings beeped in warning.

As Marinette sat down in her seat at the front of the class that, Alya gave her a sharp nod, he eyes drifting to something just past her shoulder.

“Hey, Marinette!”

Marinette whirled around like a deer in headlights, taking in Adrien’s angelic face as he assaulted her with his million-dollar smile. His golden hair was glowing in the sunlight that drifted through the windows, making it appear like an actual halo surrounding his head. Marinette might have actually made a choked noise, but she prayed it was just in her head.

“Er hi Adrien!” she yelped, immediately covering her mouth with her hands to stop herself from flat out screaming in his face.

“So…” he seemed to struggle for words, as if he hadn’t thought he’d get this far into the conversation. “Chloe’s not making you do her homework anymore?”

The topic was weak, and Marinette knew it as soon as she uncovered her mouth to stutter, “Um, no. No, she’s not. Definitely not. Not anymore, no.”

She clamped her jaw shut firmly, hoping to stop the flood of embarrassing babble from tumbling out of her mouth. Adrien just smiled good-naturedly, giving her a small pat on the shoulder,

“That’s great! I knew you wouldn’t let her push you around,” he said confidently, and Marinette wanted to melt into a puddle on the spot.

She felt awful – whilst Adrien’s praise made her heart ring out an entire symphony, she knew it was unfounded. In being complicit to Chloe’s actions, she’d been letting her friends down. Her friends who she was supposed to protect and support, her friends who had put their trust in her and elected her class president in good faith. Accepting Adrien’s praise after that felt like a lie, and Marinette’s heart instantly plummeted all the way down to her stomach. At that moment, Chloe drifted into the classroom, her eyes immediately snapping to Adrien’s hand on Marinette’s shoulder. She narrowed her eyes at Marinette venomously, but slipped into her seat without a word, grouchily digging through her bag as if it had personally offended her. As Adrien took his own seat, Marinette’s phone buzzed and she peeked at it to see the message onscreen.

 

FROM: Chloe

 

Do NOT talk to my Adrikins!!!

 

Marinette sighed, putting her phone back into her pocket without meeting Chloe’s gaze. She wasn’t about to tell her tyrant that Adrien was a person and not a thing, but that was a conversation for another time. Her phone buzzed again and she frowned at it, stealing a glance up at Chloe. The blonde was leaning forward, batting her eyelashes at Adrien whilst she pouted her heavily glossed lips, completely unaware of Marinette’s gaze. The dark haired girl pressed the home button on her phone and almost dropped it out of pure shock, her arms waving wildly in the air as she tried to catch the device. It landed with a small “clack” in the aisle, catching Adrien’s attention, and Marinette watched with horror as he leant down to pick it up. She lunged forward frantically, her head colliding solidly with his as she snatched her phone from under his open hand. She winced with pain, lifting her head to look at him as he rubbed his forehead.

“Sorry!” he said with a light smile, opening one of his eyes that had squeezed shut with pain to look at her.

Marinette held her phone in a death grip, her eyes wide with fear.

“S-Sor- I’m sorry, I didn’t- Sorry!” she squeaked, yanking herself back into her seat and looking deliberately forward, her back ramrod straight.

She could feel Chloe shooting daggers into the back of her head, but it was the last thing on her mind.

“Okay, that was _smooth_ ,” Alya teased as she sat down next to her best friend with a chuckle.

Marinette gave her a pained smile in response.

“But it wasn’t _that_ bad, girl, what’s up?”

Marinette forced herself to relax a little, letting her shoulders drop down from where they’d been trying to escape through the ceiling.

“It’s nothing,” she told Alya, putting on her easiest voice.

Alya lifted an eyebrow sceptically but didn’t press the issue. She most likely assumed it was something to do with Chloe. Marinette could barely focus on the lesson – she jumped every time the teacher called her name, she barely heard half of what Alya was saying to her, and she kept seeing Adrien shoot her concerned glances out the corner of her eye.

_Great, he probably think I’m a freak,_ Marinette thought sadly, though the idea took a mental backseat in comparison to her worry over the text she’d just received.

No sooner had the bell rung for break than Chloe’s fingers curled around her wrist, dragging her into the courtyard like she was a limp ragdoll. Marinette stumbled behind her, doing her best to stop things from falling out of her open bag. As soon as they were a good distance away, Chloe span around to face her, jabbing a pointed nail in her face.

“ _What_ was _that?_ ” she demanded, punctuating the sentence with aggressive jabs of her finger.

“Chloe!” Marinette said desperately, and the blonde blinked at the interruption of her tirade. “Did you send this?”

Marinette pulled her phone out of her bag, flicking up the screen and turning it around to face Chloe. The blonde stared at the screen, a range of emotions crossing her face, finally settling on a bizarre mixture of indignation and fear.

“I didn’t send that,” she answered. Her voice was softer than Marinette had ever heard it.

Marinette tried to swallow but her throat had gone dry. With shaking hands, she turned the phone screen back towards herself, staring down at the image in pure terror.

She was looking at an anonymous text, sent with the photo-montage Chloe had of her being unmasked, along with a short sentence that sent a chill into Marinette's bones:

 

_I KNOW WHO YOU ARE._

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DUN DUN DAAAAAAAH!!


	7. M is for Mania

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marinette investigates the new threat to her identity.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry this has taken so long for me to update! I've been super busy with deadlines and such but I'M A FREE WOMAN NOW.  
> I had to rewrite this a bit because it was WAYYYYY darker and... I don't even like dark stuff, I find it draining, but my writing always pulls me in that direction so I guess that means something

Chloe stared at the screen, a foreign feeling creeping up through her body all the way from the soles of her feet, like frost settling over a window. She could hear someone saying her name, but the voice sounded muffled and far away, as if someone was shouting at her through a pillow. Her heart stuttered a little in her chest, and had she not been so preoccupied with the picture, she would have stopped to wonder at the new emotions filtering through her.

“CHLOE!” Marinette’s voice, raw and panicked, yanked her back to the present.

Chloe’s eyes snapped back up to the girl’s, wide and scared and shining with the threat of tears.

“Did you show anyone else this picture?” Marinette asked, her voice hiking up several octaves with fresh hysteria.

“I-I…” Chloe began. But her throat constricted painfully with a realisation.

Marinette’s fearful expression twisted into a mask of anger and something else… Something… hurt?

“You did, didn’t you?” she demanded, voice trembling as she bared her teeth in a snarl. “Chloe how could you be so _stupid_?”

Chloe’s iron fortress of pride shot up so quickly she could practically feel it hit the roof of her mouth with a metallic clang, and she tasted furious bile on the back of her tongue.

“How _dare_ you? Me? Stupid? HA! Like _I’m_ the one with bad grades!” the blonde spat back, tossing her shiny ponytail so furiously she was sure she looked slightly less than ethereal for a moment.

“You have perfect grades because _Sabrina_ does all your homework!” Marinette hissed through her clenched jaw.

“Well duh!” Chloe replied snarkily, doing her best impression of bored, though a feeling at the back of her mind nagged at her.

Marinette ground her teeth so hard Chloe was certain she was going to need veneers (not that she shouldn’t have gotten them anyway, what with the amount of coffee she drank). The dark haired girl curled and uncurled her hands into fists at her sides, and for a fleeting moment Chloe felt a spike of adrenaline, as she was sure Marinette was going to punch her. The silence stretched on for a lot longer than was comfortable, the passing seconds seeming louder somehow. It was like a steady drip of water in an empty church, the small sound echoing into a void, and Chloe thought they might as well have been gunshots they felt so noisy. A horrible sense of dread started to crawl through her veins like a virus, her skin beginning to feel hot and feverish, like it was stretched to tightly across her bones, and she couldn’t help but shiver at the steady realisation of what she’d done.

“Who?” Marinette said softly after what felt like a torturous eternity. “Who did you show it to?”

Chloe took a deep breath, trying to steady herself without alerting the other girl to the whirlwind of metaphors she was feeling as she crossed her arms across her chest.

“I paid someone to Photoshop that picture of you,” she said matter-of-factly, avoiding Marinette’s gaze. “Some guy I found on Google. Skilled. WEIRD. I could barely hold a conversation he was so odd. Seriously grossed me out. He must have a copy of the photo.”

Marinette’s hand shot out, wrapping around her upper arm firmly, but not enough to hurt her. Chloe briefly wondered at her self-control – had their situations been reversed, she would not have hesitated to lash out and cause another person pain. But Marinette held back, her grip not entirely painful, but certainly not gentle. It was a firm insistence, asserting that Chloe should devote her whole attention to the matter at hand.

“Where can I find him?” Marinette demanded, her face grim.

Chloe opened her mouth to insist Marinette take her dirty hands off her designer jacket and speak to her politely as she should, but something stopped her. The blonde surveyed her classmate for a moment – Marinette looked exhausted. Though she had seemingly recovered from her illness, it was clear that the past few weeks had been grating on her. Along with her job at the bakery, school, homework, and saving Paris, she’d also been making time to go shopping with Chloe in addition to everything else. Chloe could see the dark circles of fatigue painting themselves under her eyes like a stain, and tiny lines of strain were beginning to show on her face like cracks in an old clay pot. But underneath the surface wear and tear, and the strong look of bravery and resolution that donned Marinette’s face like armour, Chloe could see it – a small tightness around the eyes, a slight thinning of the lips as they pressed together, a slightly too decided set of her jaw: Marinette was scared.

 _Did I do that?_ A small voice in the back of Chloe’s head wondered, but she shushed it harshly.

“I have his card,” she replied shortly, hand instantly moving to her purse as she pulled out a slim business card.

Marinette practically snatched it out of her hand, her eyes glaring so hard at the matte scrap of card that Chloe thought she might incinerate it at any second.

“His website is on there, it will have his correspondence address on it,” she continued, suddenly feeling a lot more helpful. An afterthought hit her and she added, “Do you need me to arrange a meeting with him?” pulling her phone out of her bag as she spoke.

Marinette’s eyes snapped back up to hers, as if she had momentarily forgotten Chloe was standing there at all (something Chloe would get offended about later).

“I can set up a meeting with him and you can swing in an… I don’t know, attack him or whatever?” Chloe babbled on (not that wasn’t right, heiresses didn’t babble!), her idea feeling less brilliant as Marinette continued to stare at her.

“No,” Marinette said after a tense few seconds, and Chloe felt visibly deflated before her instinctive indignation kicked. How dare she? Chloe’s idea was brillia-

“Not right now,” Marinette interrupted the tirade her thoughts were about to go on. “I want to scope his place out first. Maybe I can talk to him? See what he wants. And anyway, I don’t attack people.”

Marinette seemed markedly a lot calmer having received the card, and though normally Chloe would have patted herself heavily on the back for her hand in solving the problem, she couldn’t quite bring herself to do so.

“Well if that’s all you wanted…” Chloe said after a few heavy moments, placing one hand on her cocked hip in an attempt to regain some of her ostentatious attitude.

It was one thing to experience such a vulgar mix of ambiguous emotions for her rival, but it was another thing all together to actually show it on the surface for the rabble to see. Marinette opened her mouth as if she was going to thank Chloe for the card, seemed to think better of it, and closed her jaw, instead settling for a sombre nod. Chloe watched as she turned on her heel and strode down the steps into the courtyard where Alya was waiting, noticing that for once the dark-haired girl didn’t as much as scuff the toe of her cheap shoe. In fact, Marinette walked with a strange kind of strength, back straight and eyes forward, a fierceness in her expression that Chloe had only ever seen at school when she was… Standing up to her. A sickening pang went through the blonde, jarring her so hard she could almost feel her bones rattling around inside her body. She exhaled with a loud huff, trying to expel the feeling through her lungs as Sabrina trotted up beside her elbow.

“What was that about, Chloe?” Sabrina chirped, hands held meekly to her chest.

“Ugh, none of your business, Sabrina!” Chloe shot back habitually.

Sabrina instantly shrunk into herself, dropping her head and averting her gaze. The small gesture sent an irrational wave of annoyance spiking through Chloe, and she planted her hands firmly on her hips, jutting her chin out at an almost obnoxious distance.

“Oh for goodness sake, Sabrina!” Chloe barked, her eyebrows screwing together with irritation. “Stand up straight, and speak clearly! No one’s ever going to respect you if you don’t first respect yourself!”

Sabrina’s eyes darted back up, widening a little in surprise more than fear for a split second before she jolted, her back straightening almost audibly as she pulled her shoulders back and lifted her chin. The result was striking, the meek girl appearing at least ten times more confident in the span of half a second. Chloe gave her an appreciative nod, admiring the effect of her words as a curious thought snaked its way through her mind.

If she could do something like this, perhaps she’d been using her status incorrectly?

 

* * *

 “Where are you off to, Bugaboo?” Chat asked, his voice sounding slightly tinny as it came through the compact, as if he were speaking through a can-and-string. “I know the song goes ‘Fly away home’, but you’re way outside the city centre!”

“I’ve just got something I need to do,” Marinette replied, hopping absently over a chimney as she strolled across the rooftops.

The buildings near the outskirts of Paris were shorter than in the centre, and swinging between them usually meant more chance of clipping an awkwardly parked van than the speed it offered was worth. As such, Marinette contented herself with leap over the rooftops, only employing the use of her yoyo to breach particularly large gaps between them.

“Are you sure it’s nothing I can help with?” Chat’s concern held a barely audible hint of suspicion, and Marinette knew she would have to elaborate a little more to keep him from barrelling after her, always the impulsive hero. She smiled a little at the few memories of her partner rushing into situations headfirst that rapidly flickered through her head like a 16mm movie reel, and she let the affectionate warmth it brought her work its way up through her mouth to colour her words with reassurance.

“No. It’s nothing to worry about, just a loose end I need to follow up,” she told him with a grateful smile.

“Loose end to what?” Chat persisted, leaning forward into his baton until one inquisitive slit pupil took up the entire compact screen, casting a green glow over the red of Ladybug’s suit.

“Curiosity killed the cat, minou. I’ve got this, really. You should get home.”

She could tell Chat wanted to argue, but the firmness of her tone gave him enough pause for her to give him a confident smirk through the small screen.

“Fine. I’m gonna stay transformed for a little while longer, just finishing up a few more blocks, so call me if you get into trouble,” he said after a few moments, and

Marinette had to stop herself from visibly sagging with relief.

She appreciated her partner’s concern, truly, but if the person threatening her had anything incriminating in his apartment, she couldn’t risk Chat finding out her identity. Pulling out the card Chloe had given her, Marinette checked the address on the backside for what felt like the millionth time that evening. She stared at the card so hard that afternoon that the contact info had all but stamped itself to the inside of her brain. Stopping at the edge of the rooftop, she lifted her yoyo, attaching it securely around the adjacent drainpipe with a sharp flick of her wrist. She lifted one foot out over the precipice, hovering it delicately over the pavement below before pitching forward, stepping into the empty air and closing her eyes as the familiar rush of adrenaline washed over her in tandem with the breeze in her hair. Gripping her yoyo wire, she steadied her decent, stopping in front of the window on the top floor of the shabby apartment.

 

            The paint on the windowsill was dry and flaking badly, crying out for a fresh coat, and the glass was covered with a thin layer of grime, somewhat obscuring the view inside the small room. Giving a final look over her shoulder for passers by, Marinette placed her hands in the middle of the window where the rotting wood frame met, giving it a sharp push. With a small sorry groan, the latch gave way, letting her step over the radiator and into the room. It smelled musty inside, though it was relatively clean and humbly furnished. A cracked leather sofa sat opposite a small fireplace, the seat cushions worn and peeling from years of use. Behind it was a desk built into the wall, a closed laptop and graphics tablet sitting amidst a flurry of papers, magazine clippings, and photographs. Marinette practically leapt at it, sweeping into the desk chair and yanking up the screen. The laptop whirred to life, the screen illuminating the cramped room dimly against the darkness. Marinette flicked through the folders with controlled haste. She could feel panic-driven desperation trying to claw its way up into her throat, but she mentally squashed it, swallowing against the metallic taste that filled her mouth. After a few minutes of searching, she finally found a folder titled “LB” and nearly cried with happiness as she clicked it open. The photo was inside, unnervingly titled “gotcha”, and Marinette didn’t hesitate to delete it, making sure it was wiped from the recycle bin as well.

“Gotcha yourself,” she whispered triumphantly to herself.

The photo had all but deleted itself, the progress bar on screen reaching a satisfyingly full green to mark its completion when the display suddenly glitched, the entire monitor splitting into skewed horizontal fragments for a split second before a scary amount of bright white code flashed up. It shot across the screen for a mere moment, as if someone where fast forwarding the credits at the end of a film before finally dying, leaving the room in darkness save for the streetlamp outside casting an eerie orange glow across the furniture. Marinette huffed in annoyance, drumming her fingers on the desktop to ward off the tight feeling of fear gradually snaking its way into her gut as a small gust of wind blew threw the slightly ajar window. The breeze ruffled something in the reflection off the black screen, catching Marinette’s eye, and she turned in the creaky chair to focus on what she’d seen. On the opposite side of the room, squatting in the corner was a tall, fat armoire. A small corner of paper fluttered where it poked out from between the tightly closed doors, and a heavy sense of dread settled over Marinette like a leaden blanket. Wrapping her fingers around the handles, she tugged the doors of the armoire open, the stiff hinges squealing in protest. Her mouth dropped open in horror at what she saw.

Photo upon photo lined the inside of the armoire like cheap wallpaper. Magazine clippings of Ladybug had been layered on top of one another, overlapping at the edges as they competed for space. Newspaper snaps of her and Chat Noir made a ritualistic circle in the middle of the collage, ugly red marker circling her partners face multiple times. But none of that was as bad as the black and white photographs that punctuated the montage: There were photographs of her leaving her bakery, of her sitting on the steps at school, of her getting of public transport. There were photos of her on her balcony, some clearly taken from below, some from higher angles, blurry as if they’d been taken from far away. Marinette could taste bile bubbling up in the back of her throat, and she took a step back in shock, fighting against the overwhelming urge to vomit. Over the top of the whole thing were red strings, held in place by drawing pins, criss-crossing manically over one another as if a particularly aggressive spider had personally objected to the pictures. The majority of the strings linked themselves between pictures of her and Chat Noir, large arrows pointing accusingly at the feline hero like poison tipped darts, peppered with question marks.

Marinette’s eyes finally travelled downwards to the bottom of the armoire to see a small note sitting innocently atop the dark wood board. Marinette’s heart pounded in her ears as she achingly slowly reached down to pick it up. Holding it between her thumb and forefinger as if it were soaked in acid, she flicked the scrap of paper open, grinding her teeth together in a crude attempt to stop her from panicking. She was greeted with a picture of herself and Chat Noir, his arm around her shoulders and they stood waving at onlookers in the rain. Marinette remembered that day – Chat had put his hand on her shoulder, giving her a sheepish grin as she quite deliberately removed it. In white chine marker, Chat’s face had been ‘X’ed out, a few words scrawled cryptically underneath it.

 

_WHILE THE CAT’S AWAY, THE MICE SHALL PLAY_

Marinette dropped the paper as if it had spontaneously caught on fire, her eyes widening with terror. She looked frantically around the room, instantly alert for any traps. With adrenaline-fuelled rapidity, she slammed the armoire doors closed, leaping across the room and out the window flipping back up onto the rooftop. Marinette whirled around to sprint away from the room, away from the armoire full of maniacal shrine-like pictures and threatening messages, away from all of it, and collided smack bang into something dark and strong. She immediately keeled backwards, feet not quite making the necessary step back to balance her weight, and she braced herself for the fall just as a sturdy arm wrapped around her waist, pulling her upright.

“I’d say something about you falling for me, but I’m sure you’ve heard it already,” Chat Noir grinned, giving her a small squeeze as she scrambled to gain her balance.

“Chat Noir!” Marinette cried, half out of shock, half out of relief, and before she could stop herself, she wrapped her arms tightly around his shoulders.

Chat made a small noise of surprise, his arms letting go of her briefly as he took as step back to counter the force of her bodyweight, eventually coming to rest lightly over her shoulder blades. Marinette let go almost instantly, pushing her partner backwards with her hands on his shoulders to look him in the eye. Chat looked a little dazed at the uncharacteristic display of affection, but he seemed to mentally shake himself as he took in the sight of his wild-eyed friend.

“My Lady? What’s wrong?” he asked, one gloved hand coming up to rest over hers as it gripped his shoulder.

His voice was thick with worry, and Marinette forced herself to calm down, taking in a shaky breath as she plastered a smile onto her face.

“You scared me!” she declared, hoping to play off her genuine fear for nervousness at being caught atop a strange building.

“Did you find something?” Chat asked seriously, his bright green eyes searching her face for answers.

Marinette dropped her hands, adopted what she hoped was a nonchalant stance, cocking one hand on her hip for extra measure.

“Nothing. Just a regular home, super normal, nothing weird.” She replied, trying to stop the parade of anxious babble that she could taste on the tip of her tongue.

“What are you doing here? I told you to go home!”

“Well I told you I was finishing up patrol. I checked your GPS after I was done and you hadn’t moved in about twenty minutes, so I thought you might be in trouble,” Chat responded, crossing his arms across his chest as he looked out over the small apartment buildings.

If he heard the slight shrillness to her voice he didn’t mention it, though Marinette knew if he had, he’d definitely be keeping an eye on her out of concern.

“Well… Thanks. I’m fine though! I’m just heading home now,” she told him, grateful that her heart rate was returning to a somewhat regular beat in his presence rather than the rumba it had been thundering out moments earlier.

She didn’t always appreciate the security that Chat Noir allowed her, but at this moment she was truly thankful he was here with her.

“Do you want to head back to the centre together?” Chat asked, his cheeky smirk betrayed by the shine of worry tightening around his eyes.

Normally Marinette would have refused, giving him a parting one-liner and zipping off into the night, but the creepy room had rattled her to the core, and she didn’t much feel like being alone on the way back through the suburbs. Giving him a small nod, she followed Chat over the rooftops, back toward the Eiffel Tower that twinkled in the distance like a beacon of hope, managing to relax more and more each minute she was with him. There was something about knowing you had someone looking out for you unconditionally that forced her to rationalise the situation, though a small knot of fear gnawed at the back of her mind still. Saying goodbye to Chat in their usual spot, she headed home quickly, dropping through her skylight directly onto her bed as she dropped her transformation. The weight of emotional frailness pulling down her limbs with fatigue, and Marinette sprawled exhaustedly across her duvet. A quiet buzzing alerted her to a next text, and she weakly fumbled for her phone, clicking the home button to reveal a message from Chloe.

 

FROM: Chloe

 

Did you find him?

 

Marinette was too tired to even feel mad at the blonde, instead electing to type a concise reply before surrendering to the sleep that tugged her eyelids closed.

 

FROM: Marinette

 

We have a problem.

 


End file.
